University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


'• 


Pointing  the  Way 


BY 


SUTTON  E.  GRIGGS 


NASHVILLE,  TENN. 
THE  ORION  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

1908 


COPYRIGHTED  BY 

BUTTON   E.  GRIGGS, 

NASHVILLE,  TENN. 


DEDICATION. 


AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED  TO 

MY  WIFE, 

IN  THE  HOPE  THAT  SHE  MAY  FIND  HEREIN  SOMEWHAT  OF  AN  EXPLANATION 

OF  THAT  OCCASIONAL  FAR-AWAY  LOOK  IN  THE  EYES,  OF  WHICH, 

IN  HER  WIFELY  SOLICITUDE,  SHE  HAS  FROM  TIME 

TO  TIME  QUITE  PROPERLY  MADE 

COMPLAINT. 

THE  AUTHOR. 


BOOKS  BY  SUTTON  E.  GRIGGS: 


"IMPERIUM  IN  IMPERIO" 
"OVERSHADOWED" 

"UNFETTERED" 

"THE  HINDERED  HAND" 

'THE  ONE  GREAT  QUESTION" 

"POINTING  THE  WAY" 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   I.                                PAGE. 
A  FACE  OF  MYSTERY 7 

CHAPTER   II. 
A  PUZZLED  LAWYER 18 

CHAPTER  III. 
OBJECTIONS  TO  A  MARRIAGE 29 

CHAPTER   IV. 
THE  VISIT   Is   MADE 35 

CHAPTER   V. 
YET    DEBATING 44 

CHAPTER  VI. 
SHE    INVESTIGATES 54 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   PARSON    FLEES 61 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
UNCLE    JACK'S    CONVERSION 69 

CHAPTER   IX. 
THE   MAN    APPEARS 74 

CHAPTER   X. 
CONROE    DRISCOLL 79 

CHAPTER  XI. 
EINA  BEGINS  TO  PLAN 87 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THAT  Is  THE  QUESTION 95 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
EINA   AND   BAUG 100 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
A   STRANGE  LETTER 104 

CHAPTER  XV. 
SHE  INSISTS  in 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  CRUX    1 16 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

MOLAIR   ON   THE   ALERT 125 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
KICKED    OUT 132 


6  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  XIX.  PAGE. 

TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE  JACK   138 

CHAPTER  XX. 

FUNERAL  OF  A  LIVE  MAN 146 

CHAPTER  XXL 
THE  BREAK    151 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
LIGHT   COMES    158 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
QUITE  UNEXPECTED 163 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
BAUG  SEARCHING  FOR  EINA 166 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
CLEAR  SAILING 174 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 
DESIRES  HER  WILL  CHANGED  178 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
MOLAIR  AT  WORK  184 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
THE  NORTH  AND  THE  SOUTH 190 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
MOLAIR  AND  AN  OLD  FRIEND 194 

CHAPTER  XXX. 
THE  RUDOLF  FIRE  200 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 
A  FORTUNE  SPURNED 204 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 
A  BADLY  NEEDED  OPENING  207 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
SUNSHINE  AND  STORM  212 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 
A  CHINESE  LADY  220 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
A  FRIGHTENED  JUSTICE  224 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

DlSFRANCHISEMENT    FORGOTTEN     22 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  FACE  OF  MYSTERY. 

HY,  dear,  what  on  earth — " 

The  question  thus  begun  was  never 
finished.  As  to  why  the  questioner  felt  im- 
pelled to  begin  the  query  only  to  drop  it  uncere- 
moniously in  its  unfinished  state  it  will  presently 
appear. 

It  was  midday,  and  a  midsummer  sun  of  the 
Southern  skies  was  beating  down  fiercely  upon 
that  loveliest  of  all  Southern  cities,  Belrose,  the 
very  mention  of  whose  name  recalls  to  those  who 
have  seen  it,  visions  of  a  cleanly,  hustling  business 
center,  well-regulated  streets,  beautiful  but  not 
ostentatious  suburban  homes,  an  amplitude  of 
trees  with  rich  green  foliage,  rows  of  magnolias, 
testifying  by  leaf  and  flower  to  the  exuberance  of 
the  gifts  of  soil  and  air;  recalls  that  air  of  seren- 
ity that  pervades  the  city  at  eventide  as  the  hum 
of  business  grows  less,  as  night  begins  to  deftly 
weave  her  robe  of  gloom,  as  the  glare  of  the  elec- 
tric lights  comes  forth  to  aid  a  shirking  moon  and 
the  timid  stars. 

But  we  must  get  back  to  the  hot,  sultry  day, 
and  not  be  tempted  from  our  recital  by  the  phys- 
ical charms. of  the  city  of  Belrose.  The  extreme 
heat  of  the  day  was  indicated  by  swiftly  moving 
fans  and  upraised  parasols  in  the  hands  of  the 


8  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

lady  pedestrians  on  the  streets,  by  the  holding 
of  hats  in  their  hands  and  coats  on  their  arms 
on  the  part  of  the  men,  and  by  the  almost  religious 
zeal  with  which  shady  spots  were  sought  by 
those  whose  missions  called  upon  them  to  wait. 

On  the  faces  of  all  there  was  a  half -encouraged, 
half -resisted  look  of  worriment.  One  fat,  rotund 
man,  rather  low  of  stature,  came  toddling  along, 
his  collar  and  his  handkerchief  drenched  with 
perspiration,  while  his  good  nature  made  a  last 
grand  stand  against  the  eif  orts  of  the  atmosphere 
to  vex  him  beyond  measure.  To  a  leaner  com- 
panion walking  by  his  side  he  said : 

"By  gosh,  Jim,  this  is  about  the  best  time  I'll 
get,  don't  you  think?" 

"For  what?"  asked  his  companion. 

"For  croaking.  I  guess  it's  all  settled  where 
a  rounder  like  me  is  to  go  when  he  pegs  out.  I 
was  just  thinking  that  if  I  could  drop  out  of  Bel- 
rose  to-day  and  land  at  once  in  His  Satanic 
Majesty's  big  kitchen,  the  change  of  atmosphere 
would  not  be  so  violent  as  to  upset  my  delicate 
system.  See?" 

Among  the  vehicles  passing  along  Broadway 
was  a  phaeton  occupied  by  two  young  women,  one 
of  them  being  closely  veiled;  the  other  was  driv- 
ing. Suddenly  the  young  lady  who  was  driving 
lowered  the  phaeton  top  and  thus  invited  a  more 
direct  contact  with  the  rays  of  the  zealous  sun. 

The  lady  with  the  veil  had  just  arrived  in  Bel- 
rose  from  more  northerly  regions,  and  the  heat, 


A  FACE  OP  MYSTERY.  9 

oppressive  to  the  native  Belrosans,  was  doubly  so 
to  her.  Imagine,  therefore,  her  surprise  at  the 
seemingly  purposeless  lowering  of  the  phaeton  top, 
which  act  on  the  part  of  her  friend  begot  the  un- 
finished query  to  which  we  have  just  listened. 
But,  as  we  have  said,  the  question  was  not  finished, 
for  at  that  instant  the  eye  of  the  veiled  lady  wan- 
dered to  the  near  street  corner  to  the  left,  just 
ahead  of  them,  and  something  there  seemed  to 
arouse  in  her  a  sharp,  deep  interest.  Abandoning 
the  unfinished  question  the  veiled  lady  propounded 
another. 

Looking  straight  ahead,  she  said  quickly :  "Clo- 
tille,  be  circumspect  about  it,  but  let  the  horse 
walk  slowly,  and  look  at  that  man  standing  on  the 
near  corner  to  your  left.  Who  is  he?" 

Clotille  did  as  directed,  and  said:  "To  be  sure, 
I  see  several  men  on  the  corner,  Eina." 

"Oh,  I  mean  the  man,  the  man  with  his  hat  in 
one  hand  and  a  handkerchief  in  the  other." 

Clotille  cautiously  stole  a  second  glance  in  the 
direction  indicated.  A  merry  laugh  with  an  un- 
dercurrent of  satisfaction  that  did  not  escape 
Eina's  acute  ear,  and  which  in  later  days  she  so 
vividly  recalled,  came  from  Clotille,  somewhat  to 
Eina's  confusion. 

"Now,  Clotille,  at  what  are  you  laughing?  Is 
the  gent  in  question  Belrose's  all-conquering  gal- 
lant? And  do  you  think  that  I  have  fallen  a  vic- 
tim to  his  charms  and — at  sight,  too?  Why,  Clo- 


10  POINTING    THE    WAY. 

tille  Strange!"  said  Eina,  in  loving,  reproachful 
tones. 

"Oh,  be  fair  to  me,  Eina.  Cannot  your  friend, 
Clotille,  indulge  in  a  tiny  laugh  when  Eina  of  the 
cold  heart  (when  it  comes  to  the  sterner  sex) 
happens  to  see  a  strange,  handsome  young  man, 
and  takes  so  much  as  even  a  passing  interest  in 
him?  Is  it  not  time  for  me  to  sit  up  and  take 
notice?" 

"Eina  changeth  not,  Clotille." 

"My  dear,  dear  girl,  I  do  not  misjudge  you.  I 
know  only  too  well  of  the  steel  casing  about  your 
heart,"  said  Clotille,  dropping  her  playful  tone. 

"Well,  back  to  that  little  laugh  of  yours,  Clotille. 
Why  did  you  laugh  when  I  made  my  inquiry  con- 
cerning the  man  with  his  hat  in  his  hand  ?  There 
was  something  behind  that  laugh,  Clotille." 

"Let  us  take  up  things  in  their  order,  Eina. 
We  will  come  to  the  smile  by  and  by,  but  let  us 
first  deal  with  the  man." 

"All  right,  the  man,  then,"  rejoined  Eina. 

"The  man's  name  is  Baug  Peppers." 

"Why,  Clotiller  exclaimed  Eina,  almost  rising 
from  the  buggy  seat.  "You  must  be  mistaken.  No 
being  with  a  head,  and  face,  and  eyes  such  as  that 
man  has  could  ever  have  so  unpoetic  a  name. 
Baug!  Peppers!  It  is  simply  ridiculous,"  said 
Eina,  with  evident  warmth,  her  sense  of  the  eter- 
nal fitness  of  things  being  grievously  outraged. 

"Well,  that  is  his  name,  just  the  same,"  said 
Clotille. 


A  FACE  OF  MYSTERY.  11 

"Clotille,  you  may  think  so,  he  may  think  so, 
but  as  assuredly  as  your  name  is  Clotille  Strange, 
that  man's  real  name  is  not  Baug  Peppers.  I  know 
it  is  not." 

"Well,  we  will  waive  that  question  for  the  time 
being.  Now  that  you  know  what  his  name  is  at 
least  said  to  be,  what  have  you  further  to  say?" 
asked  Clotille. 

"His  mind  has  certainly  written  itself  on  his 
face..  He  is  brainy  and  true.  One  can  see  that 
at  a  glance.  It  seems  to  me  that  I  have  seen  him 
before,"  said  Eina. 

"When?  Where?"  asked  Clotille. 

"I  don't  just  recall,"  said  Eina. 

"I  will  give  you  a  few  moments  in  which  to 
recall  just  when  and  where  you  met  him,  and  will 
not  disturb  you  with  my  chatter  while  you  reflect," 
said  Clotille. 

Eina  now  leaned  back  in  the  phaeton  and  gave 
herself  up  to  an  earnest  effort  to  recall  just  when, 
where,  and  under  what  circumstances  she  had 
seen  this  Mr.  Baug  Peppers  before.  The  thing 
that  puzzled  her  most  was  that  Mr.  Peppers  was 
a  man  of  such  a  striking  personal  appearance  that 
people  generally  would  be  supposed  to  have  no 
difficulty  in  recalling  having  seen  or  met  him,  but 
here  she  was,  almost  positive  that  she  had  seen 
him  before,  and  yet  utterly  unable  to  in  any 
manner  trace  the  impression. 

By  and  by  Eina  said:  "Clotille,  I  give  it  up. 
Every  now  and  then  it  seems  as  though  my 


12  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

mind  is  upon  the  point  of  grasping  the  solution  as 
to  his  face,  whereupon  it  nimbly  slips  by  and 
eludes  me/' 

"Now,  I  will  explain  my  smile,"  said  Clotille. 

"The  impression  created  by  that  man's  face  is 
Belrose's  standing  mystery,  and  is  a  most  unique 
phenomenon.  To  begin  with,  the  face  seems  to 
impress  every  one.  We  Belrosans  all  like  to  look 
at  it,  it  matters  not  how  often  we  have  seen  it. 
Visitors  invariably  pay  special  attention  to  it,  and 
it  always  arouses  the  thought  in  them  that  they 
have  seen  it  before  or  some  face  that  greatly  re- 
sembles it.  But  we  have  yet  to  find  the  person  who 
has  stated  that  he  has  satisfied  his  own  conscious- 
ness as  to  the  identity  of  the  other  face  suggested 
by  this  face.  So  there  comes  into  the  minds  of 
strangers  and  there  lives  in  our  minds  a  sug- 
gested personality  that  ever  remains  nameless." 

"How  very,  very  queer,"  said  Eina,  quietly,  still 
trying  to  condense  the  nebulous  thought  that  had 
been  sent  floating  through  her  mind  by  the  face. 

"At  times,"  continued  Clotille,  "we  have  had 
conventions  of  national  scope  to  assemble  here, 
and  have  entertained  groups  of  delegates  at  social 
gatherings;  and  it  was  at  one  time  a  source  of 
much  amusement  to  us  to  have  our  guests  one 
after  another  go  through  the  same  series  of  ques- 
tions and  answers  that  you  and  I  in  the  first  in- 
stance indulged  in  to-day  with  regard  to  that  face 
until  the  matter  became  so  tiresome  to  Baug  that 


A  FACE  OF  MYSTERY.  13 

he  began  to  avoid  all  social  gatherings  at  which 
strangers  were  likely  to  be  present." 

"He  knows,  then,  of  the  peculiar  impression 
made  by  his  face,"  remarked  Eina. 

"Oh,  yes,  and  he  has  gotten  so  that,  when 
introduced,  he  quietly  remarks  before  the  stranger 
gets  an  opportunity  to  make  the  stereotyped  com- 
ment which  he  knows  is  forthcoming,  'Of  course 
you  think  you  have  seen  me  before,  or  think  you 
have  seen  someone  that  looks  like  me,  but  for 
the  life  of  you,  you  can't  tell  where  you  saw  me 
nor  who  it  is  that  I  resemble,  so  let  us  pass  all 
that  by/  "  said  Clotille. 

"Decidedly  interesting,  and  I,  Eina  Rapona,  am 
going  to  try  to  find  an  answer  to  the  puzzle. 
Somehow  I  feel  that  something  great,  some- 
thing tremendous  lies  behind  this  Belrose  phe- 
nomenon. I  am  not  a  prophetess,  nor  the  seventh 
daughter  of  a  seventh  daughter,  but  I  venture 
the  prediction  that  I  shall  furnish  an  explanation 
of  this  phenomenon,  and  that,  upon  discovery, 
it  will  excite  more  interest  than  it  does  as  a  mys- 
tery. Mark  my  words,  I  feel  it.  I  know  not  why. 
I  am  not  a  sentimentalist  at  all,  but  there  is 
something  great  betokened  by  that  man's  face  and 
some  tremendous  fact  lies  behind  it,"  Eina  re- 
marked. 

Had  Eina  been  observing  Clotille's  face  closely 
she  ought  to  have  been  able  to  see  that  this  re- 
solve on  her  part  was  for  some  reason  giving  Clo- 
tille a  deep  measure  of  satisfaction. 


14  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"Well,  I  must  explain  another  little  matter  to 
you,"  said  Clotille.  "Mr.  Peppers  has  solemnly 
vowed  that  he  will  wed  the  girl  that  unravels  this 
mystery.  Now,  will  you  permit  me  to  smile  to  my 
heart's  content,  since  you,  the  queen  of  the 
anti-marriage  brigade,  have  so  diligently  resolved 
upon  earning  your  title  to  a  husband?"  asked  Clo- 
tille, laughingly. 

"Dear  me !  Forewarned  is  forearmed.  That  is 
a  game  in  which  at  least  two  have  a  say.  You 
don't  balk  me,  Clotille.  I  must  solve  this  riddle, 
just  the  same,  do  you  hear?" 

"Well,  Eina,  you  are  welcome  to  your  task,  but 
as  to  how  you  are  going  to  even  start  about  this 
matter  I  don't  know.  If  you  succeed,  I  shall  crown 
you  queen  of  detectives." 

"Oh,  say,"  added  Clotille,  "Mr.  Peppers  in  for- 
mer days  took  a  deep  interest  in  some  phases  of 
politics,  and  once  formed  part  of  a  delegation 
that  called  upon  a  President  of  the  United  States. 
And,  don't  you  know,  even  the  President  singled 
him  out  and  made  the  usual  remarks  to  him. 
After  all,  as  you  say,  there  may  be  something  back 
of  such  a  universal  conception." 

"Indeed!  Indeed!  I  simply  must  know  why  it 
is  that  I  feel  within  that  I  have  seen  this  man 
before.  I  simply  must,"  said  Eina. 

At  last  Clotille  and  Eina  reached  the  cottage 
where  the  latter  was  to  dwell.  There  it  sat  crown- 
ing a  hill,  far  out  on  the  outskirts  of  Belrose,  com- 
manding a  splendid  view  of  the  city  and  of  all 


A  FACE  OF  MYSTERY.  15 

the  surrounding  territory.  As  Eina  entered  the 
cottage  yard  she  was  thrilled  with  the  beauty  of 
the  scene  before  her. 

"Oh,  Clotille,  you  are  a  born  artist.  Just  look 
at  that  rich  green  grass;  at  the  lovely  arrange- 
ment of  the  rose  bushes ;  at  the  star-shaped  beds 
from  which  those  tiny  flowers,  of  every  tint  and 
hue,  peep  at  one  so  sweetly !  Look  at  those  pretty 
ferns.  They  haven't  the  petals  of  the  flowers,  but 
they  seem  to  know  their  beauty  and  are  careful  to 
display  it." 

Lifting  her  eyes  to  the  beautifully  shaped  cottage, 
she  gazed  at  the  profusion  of  honeysuckles 
that  clambered  over  and  fully  covered  the  cottage 
walls. 

"Oh,  I  share  with  you  your  love  of  the  snug  cot- 
tage, you  dear  clinging  honeysuckles.  It  would 
seem  to  me  that  if  I  were  dead  and  should  pass 
this  way,  this  beautiful  spot  would  awaken  my 
soul  and  call  me  back  to  life  again/'  said  Eina,  her 
bosom  heaving  with  the  delight  that  surged  up 
from  her  heart. 

Tears  of  joy  stood  in  Clotille's  eyes,  for  upon 
her  had  fallen  the  whole  task  of  choosing  and 
arranging  this  home  for  her  wealthy  friend,  and 
she  was  therefore  highly  gratified  that  her  friend 
seemed  so  well  pleased. 

As  they  stood  making  a  survey  of  the  place,  the 
Negro  servant,  a  tall,  aged  man,  came  walking 
around  the  house.  He  had  an  erect,  soldierly 
carriage,  which  was  somewhat  modified  by  the 


16  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

humble  carrying  of  his  hat  in  his  hand  and  the 
deferential  inclining  of  his  head  slightly  forward, 
a  combination  of  dignity  and  humility.  His  mus- 
tache, beard  and  hair  were  white,  and  his  solemn 
face  thus  enveloped  would  have  been  a  little  awe- 
some but  for  the  kindly  light  that  gleamed  in  his 
eyes. 

Clotille  whispered  to  Eina,  saying,  'That  old 
man  is  as  honest  as  a  monk,  as  solemn  as  an  owl, 
and  as  keen  a  lover  of  the  humorous  as  you  ever 
saw." 

"Indeed!     He  does  not  look  it,"  said  Eina. 

When  the  servant  had  approached  as  near  as 
an  attitude  of  profound  deference  would  permit, 
Clotille  said,  "Uncle  Jack,  this  is  Miss  Eina  Ra- 
pona,  who  is  to  be  your  landlady." 

Uncle  Jack  bowed  low,  and  a  look  of  pleasure 
came  into  his  black  face.  He  was  very  sensitive 
on  the  point  as  to  the  class  of  people  he  was  to 
serve,  and  was  a  keen  judge  of  what  he  called 
"quality  folks."  This  pleased  look  was  due  to 
the  fact  that  Eina  had  stood  the  test  of  his  keen 
intuition. 

Clotille,  who  had  secured  Uncle  Jack  to  serve 
Eina,  eyed  him  closely,  and  was  delighted  at  the 
signals  of  pleasure  that  her  friend  had  caused 
to  appear  in  the  countenance  of  this  veteran 
Negro  connoisseur  of  faces. 

It  was  very  vital  to  Clotille's  plans  that  Eina 
should  please  Uncle  Jack,  for  in  the  schemes  that 
she  had  before  her  she  had  need  of  him. 


A  FACE  OP  MYSTERY.  17 

When  Clotille  had  escorted  Eina  into  the  house 
and  had  gone  from  room  to  room,  showing  how 
she  had  fitted  it  up  for  Eina's  comfort,  she  then 
left  her  friend  and  drove  back  toward  Belrose,  a 
smile  of  happiness  on  her  lips,  the  light  of  joy 
in  her  eyes. 

"Well,  sir,  it  worked  like  a  charm.  It  worked 
like  a  charm."  Such  was  the  happy  reflection  that 
came  and  came  again  to,  or,  speaking  more  accu- 
rately, that  abode  in,  Clotille's  mind. 


CHAPTER  II. 

A  PUZZLED   LAWYER. 

(HROUGHOUT  the  somewhat  restless  night 
which  Eina  spent  in  her  new  home,  whether 

*  waking  or  sleeping,  the  face  of  Baug  Pep- 
pers, the  face  of  mystery,  with  its  elusive  sug- 
gestiveness,  haunted  her.  When,  on  the  morn- 
ing following,  Eina  arose  to  greet  the  new  day, 
and  threw  open  her  blinds  to  let  in  the  cheering 
light  of  the  sun,  this  face  of  mystery  was  still  the 
uninvited  but  persistent  guest  of  her  mind.  Could 
Clotille  but  have  known  just  how  much  Eina's 
thoughts  were  occupied  with  this  new,  strange 
face  that  had  suddenly  thrust  itself  across  the 
pathway  of  her  life,  she  would  perhaps  have  felt 
inclined  to  regard  it  as  a  stroke  of  genius  on  her 
part  to  have  hit  upon  such  a  successful  plan  for 
the  furtherance  of  her  purposes. 

Incident  to  Eina's  making  Belrose  her  home, 
there  were  some  business  matters  that  had  to  be 
adjusted,  and  Clotille  had  arranged  for  Eina  to 
call  that  morning  at  the  office  of  one  Seth  Molair. 
When,  therefore,  the  dainty  breakfast  prepared  by 
Uncle  Jack  was  over,  Eina  repaired  to  her  room 
to  attire  herself  for  that  business  call.  Of  course 
Eina  would  not  have  admitted  it,  would  have 
denied  it  to  her  own  consciousness,  but  it  is  never- 
theless true  that  the  possibility  that  she  might 


A   PUZZLED    LAWYER.  19 

meet  the  man  with  the  mysterious  face  influenced 
her  in  the  matter  of  her  toilet. 

From  her  earliest  youth  the  world  had  tal^en 
pains  to  inform  Eina  over  and  over  again  as  to 
how  beautiful  she  was,  but  hitherto  she  had  been 
rather  indifferent  to  the  fact  of  nature's  rich  en- 
dowment, and  none  ever  thought  to  call  her  vain. 

But  as  she  now  stood  before  her  mirror  taking 
an  inventory  of  what  might  be  termed  her  charms, 
there  was  in  her  eyes,  in  this  privacy  of  her  dress- 
ing room,  the  plainest  sort  of  hungering  for  the 
beautiful  in  herself. 

"Has  the  world  judged  aright?  Am  I  beau- 
tiful?" asked  Eina  of  herself.  She  lifted  her 
bared,  rounded  arms,  tapering  so  exquisitely  at 
the  wrists,  and  gazed  at  them  for  a  few  seconds, 
then  lowered  them.  Eina  now  turned  her  atten- 
tion to  her  face,  neither  oval  nor  long,  perfectly 
proportioned,  her  features — mouth,  nose,  ears, 
forehead — each  a  work  of  art  in  itself.  And  well 
did  her  wealth  of  hair,  black  at  a  distance,  but 
brown  at  close  range,  grace  her  head.  And  well 
might  her  eyes,  those  wondrously  expressive,  beau- 
tiful black  eyes,  matching  well  the  long,  dark 
brown  eyelashes  and  heavy  eyebrows — well  might 
her  eyes,  the  dominating  center  of  a  realm  of 
beauty,  gleam  with  that  subtle,  inexplicable  charm 
that  made  a  friend  of  every  one  who  gazed  into 
their  soulful  depths. 

Gifted  with  a  rare  taste  in  choosing  and  blend- 
ing those  colors  which  best  suited  and  accentuated 


20  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

her  beauty,  Eina,  when  ready  for  her  trip  into  the 
city,  was  beyond  all  cavil  a  vision  of  loveliness. 

"It  is  one  uv  my  rights,  miss,  ter  'spress  myself 
'bout  de  looks  uv  de  lady  folks  uv  my  f amblys  whar 
I  wuks.  I  doan'  wuk  fur  none  but  quality  folks. 
Yer  air  de  puttiest  lady  I  evah  wukked  fur/'  said 
Uncle  Jack,  with  a  paternal  pride  in  Eina's  ap- 
pearance, as  he  drove  her  to  the  city. 

Bubbling  over  with  good  humor,  Uncle  Jack 
talked  to  Eina  as  they  rode  along,  giving  her 
scraps  of  history  of  Belrose. 

When  Eina  arrived  at  Seth  Molair's  office,  in- 
stead of  being  at  once  ushered  into  his  presence, 
as  was  to  have  been  expected  in  view  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  business  engagement  that  she  had 
with  him,  she  was  kept  waiting  in  the  ante-room 
for  some  considerable  time. 

In  the  office  in  which  Eina  sat  there  was  a 
large,  magnificent  mirror.  Seth  Molair,  the  occu- 
pant of  the  suite  of  rooms,  desiring  to  have  an 
opportunity  to  study  clients  unobserved  by  them, 
so  arranged  the  chairs  in  his  waiting-room  that 
this  mirror  recorded  likenesses  at  such  an  angle 
that  he  could,  by  the  use  of  a  strong  opera  glass, 
constructed  in  the  partition  between  the  two 
offices,  get  a  splendid  view  of  people  without  their 
suspecting  that  he  was  observing  them. 

The  explanation  of  Molair's  prolonged  delay  in 
admitting  Eina  was  that  he  was  both  charmed 
and  puzzled.  Eina,  as  we  have  seen,  had  taken 
special  pains  with  her  toilet,  and  Molair  was 


A    PUZZLED    LAWYER.  21 

struck  with  the  amazing  beauty  of  the  girl,  who 
impressed  him  as  being  undoubtedly  the  most 
beautiful  woman  upon  whom  his  eyes  had  ever 
fallen.  He  was  sorely  puzzled,  too,  as  to  Eina's 
nationality,  a  consideration  which,  in  Belrose,  as 
in  all  Southern  cities,  counted  for  a  great  deal. 

Eina's  complexion  had  been  the  bane  of  many 
an  artist's  life,  portrait  painters  having  despaired 
of  reproducing  its  beautiful  tints,  defying,  as 
they  did,  the  power  of  the  brush  and  pen. 
She  was  light  enough  of  complexion  to  pass 
among  the  whites  for  a  white  girl,  had  just 
enough  of  the  dark  in  her  complexion  to  permit 
her  to  pass  as  a  colored  woman  if  she  so  elected, 
while  the  underglow  of  red  in  her  complexion, 
coupled  with  her  beautiful  black  eyes  and  the  ap- 
pearance of  her  hair,  suggested  that  Indian  blood 
was  not  altogether  missing  from  her  veins. 

"Of  whatever  nationality,  it  would  seem  that 
the  races  of  mankind  have  united  to  make  this 
girl  the  composite  beauty  of  the  human  family," 
reflected  Molair. 

At  length  Molair  opened  the  door  of  his  private 
office  and  bade  Eina  to  enter.  After  a  formal  in- 
troduction, the  two  settled  down  to  the  business 
on  hand.  Seth  Molair  was  noted  for  his  dispatch 
in  business  matters,  but  it  must  be  confessed  that 
in  this  particular  instance  he  did  not  live  up  to  his 
reputation.  He  did  not  overly  prolong  the  inter- 
view, but  simply  proceeded  with  marked  delibera- 
tion, regarding  it  as  a  genuine  treat  to  have  the 


22  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

privilege*  to    merely   contemplate    the    exquisite 
beauty  of  the  face  before  him. 

The  question  of  Eina's  nationality  continued  to 
give  Molair  concern.  There  were,  to  be  sure,  the 
European  features  and  the  stamp  of  European  cul- 
ture and  spirit,  but  there  was  that  faint,  pic- 
turesque tinge  of  the  dark  that  might  or  might  not 
be  due  to  a  distant  connection  with  the  land  that 
chose  to  make  sable  her  sons  and  daughters.  Mo- 
lair  resolved  to  discover  Eina's  racial  affiliation 
before  the  interview  was  over,  and  began  to 
manoeuver  to  attain  that  end.  He  had  been  told 
that  in  every  light  person  having  a  vestige  of 
Negro  blood  in  their  veins  there  was  a  slight  mud- 
diness  behind  their  ears.  Pretending  to  have 
business  across  the  room  to  the  rear  of  Eina,  Mo- 
lair  managed  to  get  behind  her  and  to  glance  at 
her  ears. 

"No  special  mark  there,"  was  his  mental  note  as 
he  gazed  upon  Eina's  pretty  neck  and  ears. 

Molair  had  heard  that  at  the  roots  of  the  finger 
nails  there  was  always  to  be  found  a  telltale  sign 
that  betrayed  the  presence  of  Negro  blood  when 
all  other  indications  failed,  but  Eina  had  on  gloves, 
which  prevented  a  resort  to  that  test.  However, 
Molair  decided  to  overcome  this  obstacle. 
Excusing  himself  rather  abruptly,  he  entered 
his  outer  office,  closed  the  door,  and  had  the  white 
girl  who  was  his  stenographer  to  come  to  him  at 
the  office  window,  where  he  took  a  look  at  the 
roots  of  her  finger  nails  and  at  his  own.  Having 


A    PUZZLED    LAWYER.  23 

familiarized  himself  with  the  appearance  of  the 
finger  nails  of  himself  and  his  stenographer,  he 
re-entered  the  office  to  plan  for  testing  Eina. 

When  the  time  came  for  Eina  to  slign  the 
papers  incident  to  their  business  transaction, 
Molair  had  her  take  a  seat  at  a  small  table  in  the 
center  of  the  room,  the  table  being  just  large 
enough  to  hold  the  papers  to  be  signed,  but  not 
large  enough  for  the  inkstand  in  addition  thereto. 
Molair  stood  near  her,  holding  the  inkstand  in 
his  hand,  and  leaned  over  ostensibly  to  point  out 
just  where  she  was  to  sign.  In  so  doing,  in  keep- 
ing with  his  plan,  he  spilled  the  ink  upon  Eina's 
glove. 

"Clumsy!  Clumsy!  Clumsy!  I  beg  a  thousand 
pardons,"  said  Molair. 

Eina  looked  up,  her  mind  in  perfect  accord  with 
Molair's  suggestion  that  he  was  clumsy.  She 
gave  him  a  reassuring  smile,  however,  to  drive 
away  his  embarrassment,  and  said,  "I  should  have 
taken  off  my  gloves  to  write,  anyway,  so  the  fault 
is  mine,  not  yours/' 

"That  is  quite  generous  in  you,  Miss  Rapona, 
but  I  do  not  pardon  myself.  Miss  Grainger," 
called  Molair,  to  his  stenographer,  who  now  en- 
tered, "Take  that  glove  off  of  Miss  Rapona's  hand, 
step  across  the  street  to  the  store,  and  bring  us 
another  pair." 

Miss  Grainger  approached  to  draw  off  the  glove 
and  Molair,  at  the  risk  of  being  thought  rude, 
stood  so  as  to  be  able  to  see  the  finger  nails  as  the 


24  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

glove  left  the  hand.  In  his  conference  with  his 
stenographer  he  had  told  her  of  his  plan,  and  had 
asked  her  to  be  as  deliberate  as  possible  in  getting 
the  glove  off  of  the  finger  tips,  that  he  might  have 
as  good  an  opportunity  as  possible  to  see  the 
finger  nails.  Slowly  the  glove  came  off,  Molair's 
eager  eyes  following  every  inch  of  its  progress. 
When  at  last  the  finger  nails  stood  revealed,  and 
Molair's  keen  gaze  was  directed  towards  them, 
he  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief  and  said,  "Heaven  be 
praised!"  The  finger  nail  roots  were  normal. 

Eina  looked  at  Molair  inquiringly,  unable  to 
account  for  his  exclamation.  Molair  caught  the 
meaning  of  the  look,  but  proffered  no  explanation. 
When  the  papers  had  all  been  signed,  Molair 
broached  the  question  that  had  been  uppermost 
in  his  mind,  feeling  free  to  do  so,  since  Miss 
Rapona  was  able  by  any  test  to  be  classified  as 
white. 

"Miss  Rapona,"  began  he,  "the  white  people 
of  the  South  are  not  individualists.  With  the 
possibility  of  racial  antagonisms  on  the  one  hand 
and  social  commingling  on  the  other  always  con- 
fronting us,  we  are  more  or  less  in  a  chronic  state 
of  spiritual  war,  and,  just  as  in  time  of  war  you 
do  not  allow  the  individual  soldiers  personal  lib- 
erty, we  withhold  a  great  measure  of  personal  lib- 
erty from  all  Southern  people,  white  and  colored, 
and  maintain  certain  well-defined  customs." 

Eina  became  all  interest  and  waited  breath- 
lessly Molair's  deliverances. 


A    PUZZLED    LAWYER.  25 

"You  are  from  Boston,  where  social  freedom — 
the  thing  that  people  are  trying  to  say  when  they 
say  social  equality — exists.  In  the  South  social 
freedom  is  not  permitted,  for  reasons  that  I  need 
not  discuss  just  here.  Whoever  affiliates  socially 
with  the  one  race  in  the  South  is  denied  the  social 
life  of  the  other.  Will  you  regard  it  as  a  piece 
of  impertinence  on  my  part  to  ask  you  as  to 
where  you  are  to  cast  your  lot  socially?" 

"You  mean  to  say  that  there  is  no  such  thing 
as  being  allowed  to  treat  all  upon  the  score  of 
individual  merit?"  remarked  Eina. 

"Exactly.  Choice,  in  the  South,  lies  not  be- 
tween individuals,  but  between  races.  Moreover, 
if  you  have  once  passed  as  a  white  person,  you 
will  not  be  allowed  to  drop  into  the  colored  race. 
On  the  other  hand,  if  you  are  once  classed  as  a 
colored  person,  you  can  never  change  to  the  white 
race  where  that  fact  is  known,"  replied  Molair. 

"Would  you  white  people  of  the  South  accept 
me?"  asked  Eina. 

"Pardon  me,  but  what  is  your  blood?"  asked 
Molair. 

"I  am  of  English,  Spanish  and  Indian  descent. 
Of  course  you  know  that  the  Spaniards  drew  the 
dark  in  their  complexion  from  the  Moors,  who 
of  course  are  Africans.  By  both  my  Spanish 
and  Indian  blood,  which,  however,  is  all  but  lost 
in  the  English  strain,  I  am  connected  with  the 
colored  races  of  the  world." 

"Now  let  us  see,"  said  Molair.     "We  of  the 


26  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

South  place  no  ban  upon  intermarriage  with  the 
Spanish  people.  The  glorious  history  of  Spain 
has  baptized  her  slight  swarthiness,  and  we  for- 
get the  Moor.  As  for  the  Indians,  our  President 
has  advised  their  absorption  into  our  blood.  Ac- 
cording to  prevailing  standards  you  would  find  no 
barrier  to  your  entrance  into  the  white  race. 

"On  the  other  hand,  there  is  the  tinge  of  the 
dark  in  your  complexion  which  will  permit  you 
to  classify  yourself  as  colored  if  you  so  desire. 
There  are  hundreds  of  people  right  here  in  Belrose 
even  lighter  than  you  are,  lighter  than  thousands 
of  whites,  who  are  classed  as  colored." 

"I  find  myself,  therefore,  in  the  unique  position 
of  being  allowed  to  choose  for  myself  my  racial 
home.  For  most  people  that  is  a  thing  entirely 
beyond  their  control,"  said  Eina,  smiling  sadly. 

"Before  you  make  your  choice,  Miss  Rapona, 
would  you  kindly  allow  me  to  canvass  the  whole 
situation  with  you?"  asked  Molair,  speaking  with 
evident  earnestness. 

"I  know  of  nothing  that  would  give  me  greater 
pleasure,  Mr.  Molair,"  said  Eina,  much  pleased 
at  a  prospective  arrangement  that  would  give  her 
a  glance  into  the  heart  of  the  South,  that  willy- 
nilly  had  written  itself  into  her  Boston's  daily 
thought  and  nightly  dream. 

Molair  paused  awhile,  hesitating  as  to  whether 
to  say  what  he  had  in  mind,  and  searching  for  the 
best  form  in  which  to  put  what  he  would  like 
to  say. 


A   PUZZLED   LAWYER.  27 

Noting  his  embarrassment,  Eina  said,  "Feel 
free,  Mr.  Molair,  to  speak  your  mind  to  me." 

"I  could,  Miss  Rapona,  discuss  these  matters 
with  you  here,  but  somehow,  when  the  deeper 
issues  of  life  are  involved,  I  like  to  get  away  from 
this  office,  be  free  from  its  atmosphere  altogether. 
Here,  in  an  honorable  way,  I  hope,  I  look  after  my 
personal  interests  by  trying  to  faithfully  serve 
my  clients.  Elsewhere  I  am  an  unfettered  man, 
the  human  being." 

"Why  can  you  not  come  to  my  home?"  asked 
Eina. 

"There  is  the  rub.  For  the  present  at  least 
you  wish  to  keep  the  question  of  your  social 
alignment  open.  It  is  well  known  in  Belrose 
that  I  make  no  professional  visits.  My  clients 
all  come  to  me.  If  I  call  to  see  you  it  will  be 
surmised  that  I  call  to  see  you  socially,  and  if  it 
became  known  to  the  colored  people  that  I  so 
visit  you,  you  can  never  thereafter  reach  their 
best  social  life,  perhaps,"  said  Molair. 

"Why  cannot  I  call  at  your  home,  then?"  asked 
Eina. 

"If  you  enter  my  home  as  a  social  visitor  to  my 
mother,  you  take  rank  as  a  white  person.  If  you 
once  assume  rank  as  a  white  person,  you  can  never 
in  the  South  drop  into  the  life  of  the  colored 
people  unless  you  can  show  clear  title  to  Negro 
blood.  We  don't  allow  it,"  said  Molair. 

"Who  stays  with  you  at  your  home,  Miss 
Rapona?"  asked  Molair. 


28  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"One  Jack  Morris;  Uncle  Jack  they  call  him," 
replied  Eina. 

"Uncle  Jack!  Why,  I  know  Uncle  Jack,  and  a 
truer  soul  never  lived,"  said  Molair. 

"I  was  about  to  suggest,  Mr.  Molair,  that  Uncle 
Jack  might  bring  you  to  my  home  unobserved. 
I  feel  that  it  means  so  much  to  be  permitted  to 
hear  what  you  have  to  say,"  said  Eina. 

"That  is  about  the  only  way  in  which  all  objec- 
tions can  be  met,"  said  Molair. 

So  it  was  agreed  that,  under  the  chaperonage 
of  Uncle  Jack,  Molair  was  to  clandestinely  visit 
Eina. 

"By  the  way,  is  the  man  with  the  face  of  mys- 
tery a  colored  man  or  a  white  man?  I  did  not 
think  to  ask  Clotille,"  mused  Eina,  as,  sitting  by 
the  side  of  Uncle  Jack,  she  journeyed  back  to  her 
home  out  from  Belrose. 


CHAPTER   III. 

OBJECTIONS    TO    A    MARRIAGE. 

EFORE  Molair  pays  the  promised  visit  to 
Eina  with  a  view  to  influencing  her  social 
alignment,  it  is  perhaps  expedient  that  we 
learn  something  of  the  influences  that  brought  her 
to  Belrose,  something  of  the  situation,  to  play  a 
vital  part  in  which  she  had  come,  so  that,  as  we 
stand  with  her  in  the  momentous  hour  of  her 
choice  of  race  we  may  be  the  better  prepared 
to  sit  in  judgment  on  her  course. 

In  order  that  we  may  get  into  this  position  of 
vantage,  it  is  necessary  for  us  to  go  back  and 
catch  up  a  thread  that  by  and  by  merges  into 
the  situation  presented  at  the  point  where  this 
drama  of  human  life  first  unfolds  itself  to  your 
view. 

In  the  days  of  slavery  two  Negro  sisters,  with 
the  doings,  more  or  less,  of  whose  descendants  we 
shall  have  to  deal,  were  assigned  diverse  destinies, 
the  one  of  them  choosing  a  mate  within  the  Negro 
race  and  becoming  the  maternal  antecedent  of  a 
line  of  people  of  dark  complexion,  while  the  other 
became  the  maternal  founder  of  a  line  of  people  of 
mixed  blood. 

When  freedom  came,  Constantine  Gilbreath,  the 
white  man  involved  in  the  alignment  mentioned, 
did  not  abandon  nor  suffer  to  depart  the  Negro 
woman  whose  companion  he  had  been  in  slavery, 
but  continued  the  relationship. 


30  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

Among  their  children  was  Letitia  Gilbreath, 
who  was  born  to  them  a  few  years  after  the  close 
of  the  civil  war.  Upon  the  death  of  Constantine 
Gilbreath,  his  fortune,  which  was  considerable, 
was  apportioned  among  the  members  of  his  Negro 
family.  Letitia  Gilbreath  inherited  from  her 
father  a  marked  commercial  talent  and  love  of 
gain,  which  faculty  she  devoted  to  the  increase 
of  the  holdings  bequeathed  to  her,  and  as  a 
result  grew  to  be  a  fairly  wealthy  woman,  as 
wealth  went  in  the  Southland. 

Miss  Letitia  declined  all  offers  of  matrimony, 
grew  to  be  regarded  as  an  eccentric  old  maid,  de- 
voted her  entire  thought  to  her  possessions,  and 
seemed  to  shut  out  from  her  heart  all  her  fellow- 
men  and  women  with  two  exceptions,  as  follows: 
A  daughter  of  her  mother's  sister  married  and 
became  the  mother  of  a  beautiful  dark  girl  whose 
pretty  face  and  black  appealing  eyes  had  somehow 
reached  the  soft  spot  in  Miss  Letitia's  heart.  She 
applied  to  her  cousin,  Mrs.  Hannah  Strange,  for 
this  beautiful  dark  child,  Clotille,  reared  and  edu- 
cated it.  She  had  resolved,  should  the  girl  marry 
in  a  manner  that  pleased  her,  to  make  a  bridal 
present  of  one-half  of  her  fortune,  and  to  provide 
in  her  will  that  Clotille  should  come  into  posses- 
sion of  the  other  half  upon  the  testator's  death. 
Miss  Letitia's  fancy  had  likewise  gone  out  for 
Baug  Peppers,  as  a  boy,  and  she  had  resolved 
upon  him  as  a  husband  for  Clotille,  the  fact  that 
Baug  was  very  light  of  complexion  counting 


OBJECTIONS  TO  A  MARRIAGE.  31 

greatly  in  his  favor,  this  in  truth  being  a  deter- 
mining consideration. 

Miss  Letitia,  herself  a  mulatto,  would  have 
denied  most  vehemently  that  she  was  at  all  preju- 
diced as  to  color,  and  would  have  cited  the  fact 
that  her  mother  and  her  favorite  adopted  cousin 
were  dark  as  proofs  positive  that  she  could  not 
have  color  prejudice. 

But  Miss  Letitia  was  a  great  believer  in  the 
white  people,  and  the  fact  that  they  seemed  to  be 
growing  farther  and  farther  away  from  the 
Negroes  made  her  pessimistic  as  to  the  future  of 
the  colored  people  as  a  distinct  racial  element  in 
American  life.  She  had  become  a  convert  to 
the  theory  that  the  only  hope  of  the  American 
Negro  lay  in  finally  losing  himself  in  the  white 
race,  in  being  utterly  absorbed.  She  had  no  sym- 
pathy, however,  for  such  Negroes  of  light  com- 
plexion as  illegally  affiliated  with  the  white  race 
or  surreptitiously  entered  that  race,  holding  that 
all  persons  with  the  blood  of  the  colored  race  in 
their  veins  should  remain  within  the  ranks  of  the 
Negroes  until  the  race  as  a  whole  was  whitened. 

On  the  other  hand  she  viewed  it  in  the  light 
of  a  shocking  crime  for  two  dark  persons  to  marry 
each  other,  holding  that  every  newly  born  dark 
child  but  prolonged  the  agony.  She  felt  that 
Providence  now  purposed  to  overrule  the  evil  of 
miscegenation  during  the  days  of  slavery,  and 
to  thus  bring  good  out  of  evil  by  making  use  of  the 
light  complexion  contributed  to  the  race  to  lighten 


32  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

its  complexion  from  generation  to  generation  until 
it  finally  lost  its  dark  hue.  She  was  a  believer  in 
the  white  man's  temperament,  traditions,  char- 
acter and  civilization,  and  did  not  care  to  see 
these  altered  by  a  sudden  infusion  of  Negro  blood, 
but  felt  that  by  the  time  the  Negro  race  was 
ready  to  vanish  through  her  gradual  process  of 
whitening,  that  the  race  would  be  so  fundament- 
ally metamorphosed,  and  the  infusion  so  diluted 
that  it  would  in  no  wise  materially  affect  the 
base  of  the  white  man's  make-up. 

Miss  Letitia  felt  that  she  occupied  unassailable 
ground,  as  the  white  people  could  not  reasonably 
object  to  her  making  use  of  the  white  blood  which 
they  pushed  off  to  her  side  of  the  color  line.  Such 
was  the  basis  of  her  choice  of  a  husband  for  her 
cousin  Clotille. 

Baug  and  Clotille  knew  full  well  that  they  did 
not  and  would  not  love  each  other,  but  knowing 
Miss  Letitia's  hopes  and  plans,  they  did  not  jar 
her  by  raising  the  issue  before  it  had  to  be  raised, 
each  desiring  to  keep  the  wealthy  woman's  favor. 
Operating  under  this  modus  vivendi,  all  seemed 
to  be  moving  along  nicely,  neither  Clotille  nor 
Baug  desiring  to  make  a  move,  until  one  morning, 
as  Clotille  sat  in  her  seat  in  the  assembly  room 
of  Clinton  College,  noting  the  boys  as  they  filed  in 
to  take  their  respective  seats,  she  observed  in  those 
ranks  a  tall,  handsome  fellow  of  princely  form, 
whose  frank,  open  face,  intellectual  brow  and 
head  of  splendid  shape,  demanded  of  her  a  second 


OBJECTIONS  TO  A  MARRIAGE.  33 

look  and  a  third.  An  acquaintanceship  followed 
in  the  due  course  of  events  and  the  exchange  of 
sentiments  in  the  days  that  followed  ripened  their 
mutual  admiration  into  love. 

One  beautiful  May  day,  a  day  that  Clotille  never 
forgot,  in  that  short  distance  from  the  baseball 
grounds  to  the  girls'  dormitory,  Conroe  had 
poured  into  her  ear  the  story  of  his  love,  and  had 
gained  from  her  lips,  and  from  the  depths  of  her 
tender,  dark  eyes  the  information  that  he  was 
loved  in  return.  But  here  is  where  the  trouble 
arose — Conroe  was  dark. 

From  the  day  that  Clotille  discovered  that 
her  heart  had  gone  out  to  Conroe,  she  be- 
gan to  plan  to  overcome  Miss  Letitia's  ob- 
jections to  him.  She  saw  clearly  that  her  first 
step  was  to  get  Baug  Peppers  out  of  the  way. 
So  long  as  Baug  was  available  as  a  possibility  for 
a  husband,  Miss  Letitia,  Clotille  knew,  would  be 
for  him  against  the  world. 

The  next  step,  as  Clotille  viewed  the  matter, 
was  to  convert  the  white  people  of  Belrose  to  a 
more  kindly  attitude  toward  the  colored  people,  for 
Miss  Letitia  was  in  her  heart  a  worshipper  of  the 
whites  of  Belrose;  felt  that  they  were  the  most 
aristocratic  people  on  earth.  If,  therefore,  Bel- 
rose  could  be  brought  to  the  point  of  according 
the  colored  people  the  full  measure  of  citizenship 
rights  and  privileges,  it  would,  according  to  Clo- 
tille's  way  of  thinking,  operate  to  make  Miss  Le- 
titia less  pessimistic,  more  hopeful  of  the  colored 


34  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

man's  future  as  a  colored  man,  and  therefore  less 
hostile  to  the  marriage  of  dark  couples. 

"The  elimination  of  Baug  and  the  providing  of 
a  healthy  local  atmosphere  for  the  diseased  mind 
of  Cousin  Letitia  is  my  problem,  then,"  reasoned 
Clotille. 

"Now,  I  don't  know  which  is  the  harder  task, 
the  marrying  off  of  Baug  or  the  causing  of  Cousin 
Letitia  to  think  that  the  door  of  hope  has  at  last 
come  open  to  the  dark  man/'  said  Clotille  to  her- 
self. 

Time  passed  away,  Conroe  and  Clotille  were 
graduated  from  college,  the  former  entering  a 
medical  school,  while  the  latter  went  to  Boston 
to  perfect  herself  in  music. 

In  Boston,  Clotille  met  and  studied  Eina,  and 
felt  convinced  that  she  had  at  last  come  upon  the 
girl  that  could  wrest  from  Baug  the  control  of  his 
heart. 

Eina,  who  was  an  orphan,  grew  to  be  fond  of 
Clotille,  and  expressed  a  desire  to  come  to  Belrose 
to  live.  This  was  exactly  what  Clotille  desired, 
and  shortly  after  her  return  home  she  wrote,  tell- 
ing Eina  to  come. 

Now  that  we  have  seen  how  Eina  came  to  Bel- 
rose,  Mr.  Molair  may  proceed  to  pay  his  visit. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE  VISIT  IS  MADE. 

LOWLY,  languidly,  and  with  ever  reddening 
orb  the  sun  was  sinking  toward  its  rest, 
making  way  for  that  eventful  night  in  the 
life  of  Eina,  when  Molair  was  to  visit  her  home 
and  discuss  with  her  the  question  of  her  racial 
alignment. 

Hitherto  Eina  had  looked  upon  the  human 
family  as  one,  but  now  was  to  make  her  choice 
of  caste,  or  have  the  choice  made  for  her. 

"According  to  what  Mr.  Molair  says,  I  am  to 
half  die  to-night,  to  limit  the  full,  free  rush  of 
my  soul  to  the  one  or  the  other  group  of  my  fellow- 
beings.  Whether  I  will  or  not,  the  choice  must 
be  made."  So  reflected  Eina,  as  she  sat  upon 
her  porch  waiting  for  the  set  of  sun  which  was 
to  bring  to  her  door  Seth  Molair,  in  charge  of 
Uncle  Jack. 

When  there  comes  the  time  in  the  life  of  a  hu- 
man being  that  the  fate  of  the  eternal  years  seems 
crowded  into  a  brief  space  for  determination, 
an  effort  on  the  part  of  the  soul  is  put  forth  to 
burst  out  of  its  prison  and  ramble  through  the 
halls  of  nature  in  search  of  superior  wisdom  for  a 
decision.  So  Eina  looked  out  upon  the  landscape 
before  her  and  said,  "Mother  earth,  what  have 
you  to  say  to  your  daughter  in  this  solemn  hour?" 


36  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

The  slope  that  began  a  few  hundred  yards  in 
front  of  her  porch  seemed  to  say  "Follow  me" 
as  it  gradually  fell  away  down  to  a  valley  in 
which  there  stood  a  few  trees  scattered  here  and 
there  lining  a  small  stream  that  flowed  leisurely 
along  en  route  to  the  far,  far  distant  sea. 

In  her  imagination  the  meditating  Eina  fol- 
lowed the  waters  of  this  little  stream,  passed  with 
them  under  culverts,  through  the  city  of  Belrose 
and  into  the  Ambrose  River  that  skirted  that  city, 
followed  the  waters  by  the  cornfields,  on  and  on 
through  the  land  of  cotton,  then  the  land  of  sugar- 
cane, by  the  busy  wharf,  by  the  quiet  village,  on 
and  on  and  on  to  the  great,  great  deep. 

As  in  her  imagination  the  waters  swept  out 
into  the  mighty  ocean,  Eina  shuddered,  folded  her 
arms  a  little  tighter  as  if  it  were  she  that  was 
making  the  sweep  into  the  boundless  deep. 

"No  comfort  comes  to  me  in  that  line  of 
thought,"  said  Eina  to  herself,  now  lifting  her 
sad  eyes  to  the  evening  sky,  in  which  the  sun  was 
all  but  set.  But  no  relief  was  there,  for  the  sun 
seemed  to  say,  "I,  too,  must  battle  for  my  life." 

Eina  gazed  at  the  cloud  through  which  the 
sun  was  feebly  shooting  his  failing  rays,  then 
looked  at  a  heavier  cloud  hovering  immediately 
beneath  the  fighting,  dying  king  of  day,  ready  to 
engulf  him  when  his  reign  was  over.  At  last  he 
sank  into  this  dark  cloud  into  which  there  then 
came  a  rift  through  which  he  shot  a  flood  of 
parting  brilliance  as  if  to  say,  "I  go  down,  but  go 


THE   VISIT    IS    MADE.  37 

in  the  fullness  of  my  powers.  I  shall  rise  again." 
The  sun  was  set. 

The  spirit  of  Eina,  yet  hungry  for  comfort,  now 
sought  solace  in  the  little  yard  before  her.  Ris- 
ing from  her  chair  she  bent  over  the  banister 
of  her  porch  and  in  the  gloaming  looked  from  tree 
to  tree  and  from  flower  to  flower.  The  trees  moved 
their  limbs  only  in  the  feeblest  manner,  as  if  in 
respect  for  her  meditation.  Little  birds  flitted 
noiselessly  by  to  their  nests.  Even  the  crickets  in 
the  grass  seemed  to  seek  to  subdue  their  voices. 

"Oh,  this  is  too  solemn.  I  gain  strength  no 
where.  I  must  fight  out  life's  great  battle  alone," 
said  Eina,  leaving  the  porch  and  entering  her 
parlor. 

At  length  Uncle  Jack  arrived,  and  with  due 
pomp  and  ceremony  escorted  his  distinguished 
companion  into  Eina's  reception  room. 

As  Molair's  eye  noted  the  carpet  on  the  floor, 
the  furniture,  the  pictures  on  the  wall  and  all 
the  little  touches  of  art  in  the  articles  and  ar- 
rangement of  the  room,  his  sense  of  harmony  was 
thoroughly  pleased  and  he  said  inwardly: 

"No,  I  make  no  mistake  when  I  invite  this  lady 
of  refined  tastes  to  membership  in  the  race  to 
which  she  properly  belongs  by  every  consideration 
of  right  and  blood." 

When  the  greetings  of  the  day  had  been  passed 
and  a  few  moments  occupied  in  conversation  on 
general  questions,  Eina  opened  the  discussion  on 
the  matter  uppermost  in  the  mind  of  each,  and 


38  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

to  Mr.  Molair's  surprise,  at  once  put  him  on  the 
defensive. 

"You  have  come  to-night  to  ask  me  to  choose 
my  social  atmosphere,  my  spiritual  home.  Will 
you  allow  me  to  probe  somewhat  deeply  into  the 
matter  and  ask  some  questions  that  may  appear 
impertinent?"  asked  Eina. 

"I  do  not  shrink  from  any  feature  of  the  case. 
I  can  in  perfect  coolness  canvass  the  entire  situa- 
tion, past,  present  and  prospective,"  said  Molair. 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  you  say  that,  Mr.  Molair; 
so  very  glad.  A  matter  so  grave  needs  the  very 
freest  discussion.  I  am  so  glad  you  will  not  take 
offense.  I  have  heard  that  the  Southern  white 
people  were  so  sensitive,"  said  Eina. 

"Mr.  Molair,"  Eina  continued,  "I  believe  the 
richest  inheritance  of  a  race  to  be  its  spirit.  Did 
not  slavery  taint  your  racial  spirit,  and  do  not  all 
who  enter  your  portals  pass  under  the  shadow  of 
the  blight?" 

"Upon  the  great  mass  of  mankind,  Miss  Rapona, 
environing  influences  have  a  marked  effect,  but 
there  are  natures  that  rise  superior  to  their  en- 
vironments, just  as  the  lily  in  all  of  its  beauty  and 
cleanliness  rises  from  the  slush  and  slime,"  began 
Molair,  in  reply. 

"My  ancestors  owned  slaves,  but  were  not  in 
any  manner  demoralized  by  the  institution.  They 
were  kind  to  their  slaves,  did  not  resort  to  cor- 
poral punishment,  taught  the  sanctity  of  the  mar- 
riage relation,  insisted  on  good  moral  conduct  on 


THE   VISIT    IS    MADE.  39 

the  plantation,  never  through  sales  separated  a 
family,  and  from  time  to  time  emancipated  such 
slaves  as  showed  that  they  had  attained  unto  the 
full  stature  of  industrious,  civilized,  moral  beings. 
In  short,  to  my  ancestors,  whatever  else  it  was  to 
others,  slavery  was  a  civilizing  school,  and  to  deal 
honorably  by  those  helpless  people  was  a  family 
principle,  sacredly  transmitted  from  one  genera- 
tion to  another." 

"Were  not  your  people  favorable  to  the  war 
of  secession,  which,  whatever  its  mainspring, 
would  have  resulted  in  buttressing  the  institution 
of  slavery?"  asked  Eina. 

"The  institution  of  slavery  was  not,  of  course, 
of  Southern  origin.  It  was  with  us  an  inheritance 
from  a  world-wide  custom.  We  happened  to  get 
a  larger  dose  of  it  than  any  other  part  of  the 
world,  as  our  home  was  near  the  latitude  of  the 
original  home  of  the  enslaved  race.  My  family 
believed  the  institution  wrong  and  harmful  in 
the  large,  but  felt  that  the  South  could  better 
work  out  the  problem  of  getting  rid  of  the  insti- 
tution alone  rather  than  in  connection  with 
another  section  lacking  the  sympathetic  con- 
sideration that  flows  from  immediate  touch  with 
a  problem,"  responded  Molair. 

"Well,  you  have  stood  your  examination  very 
well,  Mr.  Molair.  Right  gladly  will  I  hear  what 
you  have  to  say,"  said  Eina  earnestly. 

"Truly,  Miss  Rapona,  there  is  not  a  spark  of 
prejudice  behind  what  I  am  to  say.  I  confess  to 


40  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

having  strong  pride  of  race  but  not  to  prejudice. 
Of  course  prejudice  is  here,  but  thus  far  it  has 
not  inoculated  me." 

Eina  nodded  her  acceptance  of  this  assurance. 

"Miss  Rapona,  was  there  ever  in  all  the  world 
a  more  pitiable  spectacle  than  that  which  the 
presence  of  the  colored  man  in  America  consti- 
tutes to-day?  His  return  to  Africa  is  precluded 
by  the  fact  that  Africa  is  projected  on  a  lower 
economic  and  spiritual  plane  than  that  to  which 
the  Negro  is  willing  to  fall  back,  nor  would  the 
economic  forces  of  the  South  quietly  submit  to  a 
general  exodus  even  if  the  Negro  desired.  So  the 
Negro  is  riveted  here  by  the  economic  conditions 
within  and  without. 

"In  the  South  there  is  a  pronounced  feeling 
against  the  absorption  of  the  race  into  the  po- 
litical and  social  fabric,  and  he  is  a  political 
and  social  Ishmaelite,  with  his  hand  against 
every  one  and  every  one's  hand  against  him  by 
the  very  logic  of  the  situation.  The  door  of  hope 
is  closed  to  him.  There  are  no  stars,  no  moons, 
no  suns  to  light  up  his  dark  skies,  so  far  as  the 
body  politic  is  concerned,  and  his  spirit  must 
struggle  with  all  the  darkness  and  briers  and  bogs 
of  the  spiritual  jungle  without  the  cheering  light 
of  hope,  which,  even  when  unrealized,  serves  to 
make  men  better.  To  work,  to  eat,  to  sleep,  to 
die  is  the  utmost  programme  that  organized  so- 
ciety in  the  South  offers  this  race." 


THE   VISIT    IS    MADE.  41 

Mr.  Molair  now  paused  for  an  instant  as  if  to 
allow  his  words  to  sink  into  Eina's  heart. 

"But,  Mr.  Molair,  is  there  no  hope?"  asked  Eina. 

"The  one  thing  needed  in  the  South  is  political 
co-operation  between  the  better  elements  of  whites 
and  the  Negroes,  but  the  manner  of  the  coming  of 
emancipation,  enfranchisement  and  elevation  to 
high  public  station  seems  to  have  riveted  the  Negro 
into  one  party,  while  the  terror  of  being  ruled  by 
an  alien  and  backward  race  have  chained  the  real 
strength  of  the  white  race  into  an  opposing  party. 
You  can  see  at  a  glance  the  utter  depths  of  the 
sentiments,  passions,  and  interests  involved  and 
what  labor  it  will  require  to  emancipate  both 
races.  I  see  no  forces  at  work  looking  to  the 
blending  of  the  political  interests  of  the  white 
and  colored  people,  and  so  my  voice  at  this  stage 
of  the  storm  is  simply  'no  land  in  sight/  As  long 
as  there  is  to  be  a  bitter  political  war  between 
the  Negroes  and  the  whites  of  the  South,  how  can 
the  condition  change?" 

On  and  on  the  discussion  ran,  Eina  asking  ques- 
tions and  Molair  seeking  with  the  utmost  candor 
to  enlighten  her  from  his  viewpoint.  After  the 
question  had  been  fully  canvassed  Molair  said : 

"Now,  Miss  Rapona,  you  have  the  situation  be- 
fore you.  Two  worlds  call  you  to-night.  Which 
will  you  enter?" 

Molair  now  stood  up  and  bent  his  gaze  upon  the 
bowed  head  of  the  troubled  girl  before  him.  In 
an  absent-minded  sort  of  way  Eina  looked  up  into 


42  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

Molair's  face,  while  her  thoughts  ran  out  into  the 
wide,  wide  world  to  all  that  this  strong,  vigorous 
young  scion  of  the  white  race  typified. 

As  Eina  sat  reflecting,  thus  ran  her  thoughts: 

"Here  stands  before  me  power,  an  offshoot  of 
that  force  that  bade  its  flag  keep  pace  with  all 
the  journeyings  of  the  sun.  Power  and  glory, 
such  as  the  Anglo-Saxons  can  give,  await  me. 
Centuries  of  power  call  unto  me. 

"Over  against  this  picture  stands  a  tragic  situa- 
tion and  present  day  weakness,  whatever  else  the 
future  may  hold.  In  this  tragic  situation  is  my 
dear,  dear  friend.  If  I  enter  it,  I  shall  at  least 
have  the  consolation  to  know  that  I  do  not  per- 
sonally deserve  whatever  of  suffering  comes  to 
me.  Is  it  better  for  the  souls  of  men  to  be  under 
a  load  that  is  crushing,  or  wittingly  or  unwitting- 
ly a  part  of  the  crushing  load?" 

Eina  now  arose  and  the  two  stood  silent  for  a 
few  moments.  Each  felt  the  awful  gravity  of  the 
situation. 

"Just  a  personal  word,  Miss  Rapona,  before  you 
decide.  Permit  me  to  testify  to  my  respectful 
admiration  of  you,  drawn  from  my  two  interviews 
with  you.  Perhaps  I  seem  to  go  too  far,  but  when 
nature  has  the  conception  that  what  is  to  be  done 
must  be  done  quickly,  it  works  in  a  hurry.  Note 
the  proverbial  precociousness  of  the  child  that  is 
not  to  dwell  on  earth  very  long.  I  would  much 
enjoy  the  cultivation  of  your  acquaintance,  and 
feel  that  I  would  be  blessed  with  your  friendship, 


THE   VISIT    IS    MADE.  43 

simply.  Of  course,  if  you  choose  to  cast  your  lot 
with  the  colored  people,  you  dig  between  us  that 
unfathomable  Southern  gulf  which  is  not  on  the 
maps,  but  which  is  far  deeper  and  wider  than 
those  that  are,"  said  Molair. 

"On  which  side  of  this  gulf  is  the  man  with 
the  face  of  mystery?"  was  the  thought  that  now 
came  into  Eina's  mind.  Was  it  fate  that  sug- 
gested it? 

Lifting  her  perplexed  and  all  but  tearful  gaze  to 
Molair  she  said :  "Give  me  time  to  decide." 

"Very  well.  If  you  claim  your  place  in  the 
white  race,  I  hope  to  see  you  again.  If  you  choose 
to  cast  your  lot  with  the  colored  people — farewell 
— forever,"  said  Molair,  his  voice  falling  to  a  sol- 
emn whisper. 

Eina  shuddered.  "Good-night,"  she  said,  ling- 
ering on  the  words.  With  her  hand  to  her  cheek, 
lost  in  meditation,  Eina  stood  long  on  the  spot 
where  Molair  left  her. 


CHAPTER  V. 
YET  DEBATING. 

N  the  night  of  Seth  Molair's  visit  to  Eina, 
his  mother  sat  in  the  library  awaiting  his 
return,  as  was  her  custom  when  he  was 
out  at  night. 

"You  are  a  little  late  to-night,  Seth,"  said  Mrs. 
Molair,  as  she  received  her  son's  greeting  kiss. 

"Yes,  mother;  I  have  just  left  the  home  of  the 
most  beautiful,  the  most  attractive  girl  that  ever 
I  saw." 

Mrs.  Molair's  heart  gave  a  wild  leap  of  joy. 
Over  her  life  there  was  but  the  one  dark  shadow. 
Seth  was  her  only  child,  was  unmarried,  seemed 
to  have  never  thought  of  matrimony  for  himself, 
and  as  a  consequence  of  his  course  had  raised  the 
fear  in  her  mind  that  their  branch  of  the  historic 
Molair  family  was  near  its  end — a  thought  that 
was  far  from  pleasing  to  her.  More  than  any- 
thing else  in  the  wide  world,  this  threatened  ex- 
tinction of  the  Molair  name  gave  her  deep  con- 
cern. Imagine,  therefore,  the  rapture  of  her 
mother  heart  when  she  heard  the  cool,  impassive 
Molair  grow  enthusiastic  over  the  charms  of  a 
young  woman. 

"Describe  her  to  me,  Seth,"  said  Mrs.  Molair, 
laying  aside  a  book  which  she  had  been  reading, 
and  looking  approvingly  at  the  idol  of  her  heart. 


YET  DEBATING.  45 

"You  would  really  have  to  see  her  to  get  a  prop- 
er idea  of  her  beauty,  mother.  As  rich  as  is  the 
English  language,  it  really  has  no  words  that  fit- 
tingly portray  the  charms  of  that  girl." 

Mrs.  Molair  felt  like  kissing  Seth  rapturously, 
so  happy  was  she  to  find  him,  as  she  thought,  thus 
enamored  of  one  of  the  gentler  sex. 

"Where  on  earth  has  she  been,  Seth,  that  I  have 
never  seen  her?" 

"Oh,  she  has  just  arrived." 

"Do  your  best  at  describing  her,"  requested  Mrs. 
Molair  with  enthusiasm. 

Molair  now  attempted  a  description  of  Eina, 
and  the  picture  that  he  drew  served  to  stimulate 
Mrs.  Molair's  interest  in  the  girl. 

"Oh,  may  it  be  that  kind  heaven  has  at  last 
sent  me  a  wife  for  my  son,"  was  the  inward 
prayer  of  Mrs.  Molair. 

"But,  mother,"  said  Molair,  a  look  of  deep  se- 
riousness on  his  manly  face ;  "there  is  danger  that 
she  will  cast  her  lot  with,  and  pass  as  one  of,  the 
colored  people." 

"The  stars  above!"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Molair, 
holding  up  her  hands  in  an  attitude  of  horror  and 
repugnance. 

"Really  white?"  she  asked. 

"Her  complexion  is  lighter  than  that  of  many 
whites  whom  we  call  our  friends,  and  she  can 
pass  the  finger  nail  test  all  right,"  replied  Molair. 

"Where  does  she  come  from?" 

"Boston." 


46  POINTING   THE    WAY. 

"That  Boston!  Seth  we  must  save  this  girl. 
We  must  not  allow  a  calamity  like  that  to  befall 
her." 

"I  have  been  to  see  her  and  sought  to  dissuade 
her.  I  have  not  thus  far  succeeded,  however," 
said  Molair. 

"I'll  see  her,"  said  Mrs.  Molair,  "and  when  I 
have  finished  talking  to  her  she  will  be  in  her 
right  mind." 

It  was  agreed  upon  by  Seth  and  his  mother 
that  she  was  to  go  to  see  Eina  early  the  <iWow- 
ing  morning. 

Mrs.  Molair  now  retired  to  bed,  but  did  not  fall 
asleep,  her  mind  having  been  thrown  into  such  a 
feverish  state  by  the  news  which  Seth  had 
brought.  The  disappearance  of  many  of  the 
great  names  of  the  Southland  was  traceable  to 
alliances  with  attractive  colored  girls,  which  al- 
liances were  of  course  denied  the  sanction  of  law, 
thus  throwing  the  progeny  of  great  families  be- 
yond the  pale  of  law.  Thus  far  the  Molair  family 
had  made  its  escape,  and  while  Mrs.  Molair  had 
the  utmost  confidence  in  Seth's  character,  she 
could  not  be  indifferent  to  the  fate  that  had  over- 
taken other  family  names,  that  of  the  Gilbreath's 
for  example. 

"If  this  girl  can  pass  the  test  and  can  enter 
freely  into  the  white  race  she  might  become  my 
boy's  wife,  for  evidently  she  has  deeply  impressed 
him.  If  she  abide  in  the  colored  race  and  a  gen- 


YET   DEBATING.  47 

uine  attachment  ripens  between  her  and  my  only 
boy  child ! — "  Such  were  the  thoughts  that  coursed 
through  Mrs.  Molair's  mind,  rendering  her  night 
a  sleepless  one. 

On  the  following  morning  Mrs.  Molair  was  up 
with  the  sun,  and  was  soon  speeding  rapidly  to 
Eina's  home.  She  rang  the  door  bell  and  Uncle 
Jack  responded. 

When  he  saw  that  it  was  Mrs.  Molair,  Uncle 
Jack  called  into  service  one  of  his  most  Chester- 
fieldia^  bows,  then  escorted  her  with  much  re- 
spectful dignity  into  Eina's  parlor,  where  she 
took  a  seat  to  await  Eina's  coming.  As  she  noted 
the  beauty  and  taste  of  the  appointments  of  Eina's 
home,  her  heart  warmed  to  the  girl. 

"Only  a  sweet,  pure  soul  could  produce  an  effect 
like  this,"  said  Mrs.  Molair  to  herself. 

When  Eina  appeared  at  the  parlor  door  and  Mrs. 
Molair  caught  sight  of  her  beautiful  face,  flash- 
ing out  in  no  uncertain  way  the  nobility  and  lofti- 
ness of  her  soul,  Mrs.  Molair  heaved  a  sigh  of  re- 
lief. 

"If  all  else  fails,  thank  heaven,  here  is  no  Mor- 
ganitic  pitfall  for  Seth,  unless  mother  nature  who 
chiseled  that  girl's  brow  is  a  miserable  liar," 
thought  Mrs.  Molair,  as  in  her  joy  over  the  type 
she  judged  Eina  to  be  she  rushed  to  and  kissed 
her. 

Eina  could  not,  of  course,  understand  the 
warmth  of  the  greeting,  but  felt  honored,  for,  no 


48  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

less  than  in  her  own  case  the  worth  of  Mrs.  Molair 
was  written  in  her  countenance  and  bearing. 

When  seated  Mrs.  Molair  began :  "Miss  Rapona, 
I  am  Mrs.  Molair,  the  mother  of  Seth.  I  have 
come  to  take  up  the  question  of  your  social  align- 
ment." 

"I  am  much  pleased  to  meet  you.  Your  son  is 
a  noble  man  at  heart  and  in  life,  I  feel.  I  am  so 
glad  that  I  met  him.  Since  I  see  his  mother,  I 
understand  the  source  of  his  qualities,"  said  Eina. 

"Seth's  father,  child,  was  the  finest  man  that 
ever  lived,"  said  Mrs.  Molair,  her  love  for  her  de- 
ceased husband  not  allowing  even  Seth  to  be 
classed  above  him. 

But  her  mother  love  now  asserted  itself,  and  she 
said:  "And  so  is  Seth." 

"So  we  have  two  men,  each  being  the  fin- 
est that  ever  lived,"  said  Eina  laughingly,  in 
thorough  sympathy  with  Mrs.  Molair's  praise  of 
her  husband  and  son.  In  the  background  of  her 
mind,  however,  there  was  a  third  candidate  for 
this  honor  of  being  the  finest ;  but  his  case  has  not 
yet  been  heard — the  man  with  the  face  of  mys- 
tery. 

"Child,  my  son  tells  me  that  it  is  possible  that 
you  may  ally  yourself  with  the  colored  people. 
Have  you  ever  associated  with  them  before?" 
asked  Mrs.  Molair. 

"My  association  has  all  along  been  with  the 
whites,  save  in  the  case  of  one  girl  friend  at  whose 
instance  I  am  here  in  the  South,"  said  Eina. 


YET   DEBATING.  49 

"There  is  a  faint  suggestion  of  the  dark  in  your 
complexion,  no  more,  however,  than  what  numer- 
ous of  our  best  white  people  have.  How  does  that 
come?"  asked  Mrs.  Molair. 

"I  am  of  Spanish,  Indian  and  Caucasian  de- 
scent." 

"Have  you  any  Negro  blood?" 

"The  Spaniards  got  their  tinge  of  the  dark 
through  the  Moors,  they  say,  and  the  Moors  are 
Africans,"  replied  Eina. 

"My  child,  you  can  pass  for  white.  We  do  not 
bar  those  races  socially  that  have  given  marked 
evidence  of  governmental  efficiency.  We  don't 
draw  the  line  on  Spaniards  or  a  brave,  fighting 
people  like  the  Indians.  We  don't  object  to  that 
blood.  Did  not  Seth  tell  you  about  the  handicaps 
affecting  the  colored  race?"  asked  Mrs.  Molair. 

"He  did." 

"Now  let  me  tell  you  some  things  that  Seth 
could  not  tell  you.  By  the  way,  where  is  your 
mother?"  asked  Mrs.  Molair. 

"Passed  away.     Died  when  I  was  an  infant." 

"Father?" 

"Gone,  too.  Lived  to  see  me  fifteen  years  of 
age,  then  left  me." 

"Poor,  dear  child.  Do  you  think  I  am  going  to 
allow  you  to  choose  life  in  the  Southern  under- 
world without  doing  my  best  to  prevent  it?"  said 
Mrs.  Molair,  now  more  determined  than  ever  to 
keep  Eina  within  the  white  race. 


50  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"Let  me  talk  to  you  as  a  mother  to  her  daugh- 
ter, Eina,"  said  Mrs.  Molair. 

"You  must.     I  crave  of  you  that  honor." 

"Your  character,  Eina,  is  formed.  Your  abso- 
lute devotion  to  all  that  is  noble  in  life  is  written 
in  that  sweet  face  of  yours,  in  those  glorious  eyes. 
Our  supreme  mother,  nature,  has  seen  fit  to  link 
you  with  the  motherhood  side  of  the  human  fam- 
ily, and  you  must  view  matters  from  that  point. 
You  may  be  blessed  with  a  home  and  daughters 
some  day,  and  life  for  a  colored  girl  in  the  South 
is  far  from  ideal." 

"Tell  me  just  how  and  tell  me  frankly,"  said 
Eina  earnestly,  leaning  forward  and  resting  her 
cheek  upon  her  hand. 

"A  girl,  the  future  wife  and  mother,  has  vital 
need  of  the  atmosphere  of  protection,  respect,  and 
chivalric  deference;  for  upon  her  is  the  human 
race  dependent  for  the  direct  infusion  into  the 
bone  and  marrow  of  the  race  all  that  is  glorious. 
Civilization  shows  that  this  is  only  done  where 
man  accords  protection  to  woman  and  allows  only 
that  which  is  glorious  to  be  written  upon  the  wom- 
an soul." 

"Are  not  colored  men  brave?  Can  they  not 
surround  the  women  of  their  race  with  the  desired 
atmosphere?"  asked  Eina. 

Mrs.  Molair,  who  had  been  sitting  some  little 
distance  from  Eina  now  drew  near  and  said, 
"Child,  I  am  going  to  picture  to  you  the  most 
tragic  situation  in  all  this  earth.  The  white  man 


YET  DEBATING.  51 

of  the  South  has  taken  the  government  into  his 
hands  exclusively.  A  government  is  as  influential 
in  what  it  will  not  do  as  in  what  it  will  do.  It 
has  been  clearly  demonstrated  that  our  white  gov- 
ernment will  not  punish  a  white  mob.  We  de- 
claim against  it,  try  to  prevent  it,  but  we  have  not 
yet  developed  the  capacity  to  punish  the  mob  after 
it  has  succeeded  in  doing  its  work. 

"The  menace  of  the  unpunishable  mob  stands 
before  every  colored  man  who  seeks  to  hold  a 
white  man  accountable  for  misconduct  toward  the 
female  members  of  his  family.  In  court,  with 
the  best  sentiment  of  the  white  people  appealed 
to,  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  the  desire  on  the  part 
of  the  colored  man  to  protect  his  home  would  not 
be  crushed  out;  but  the  mob  stands  between  him 
and  the  court.  Thus  the  spirit  of  protection, 
which  in  the  white  man  is  buttressed  by  the 
courts,  is  in  the  Negro  confronted  with  the  scowl 
of  murder  on  the  face  of  the  mob. 

"Are  not  the  colored  men  willing  to  pay  even 
this  price  to  accord  their  women  protection?" 
asked  Eina. 

"The  colored  women  protect  the  men.  Know- 
ing the  menace  that  confronts  their  men,  colored 
women  swallow  insults.  I  dislike  to  dwell  upon 
unpleasant  incidents  in  our  life  here  in  the  South, 
and  high  heaven  knows  there  are  enough  of  them, 
but  a  girl  standing  on  the  border  line,  about  to 
make  choice  of  race,  should  know  all." 

"Oh  do  speak  fully,  do,  Mrs.  Molair!"  said  Eina. 


52  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"Well,  one  of  the  saddest  cases  that  ever  came 
to  my  ears  was  that  of  a  colored  lad  in  a  neighbor- 
ing county.  A  white  man  uttered  forbidden 
words  to  this  boy's  sister.  The  girl  fled  to  her 
home  and  told  her  brother  of  what  had  been  said 
to  her.  Borrowing  from  our  Southern  code  on 
such  matters,  this  boy  went  to  the  home  of  the 
white  man,  drew  a  pistol,  spoke  his  mind  very 
freely,  but  did  not  kill. 

"The  next  morning  the  white  man  armed  him- 
self, went  to  this  boy's  place  of  work,  called  him 
out  and  shot  him  down.  That  is  what  happened 
where  a  colored  girl  told  and  her  brother  took 
the  matter  in  hand.  If  that  girl  has  another 
brother  that  is  concerned  in  her  protection,  do  you 
think  she  will  be  so  ready  to  sentence  him  to  death 
by  reporting  insults  ?" 

Drawing  near  to  Eina,  Mrs.  Molair  threw  an 
arm  around  her  neck  and  talked  to  her  long  and 
earnestly,  laying  bare  experiences  that  had  been 
reported  to  her  by  the  colored  women  of  Belrose. 
At  length  she  said :  "Now,  my  daughter,  I  exhort 
you  to  come  into  a  race  where  men  are  encour- 
aged to  play  the  part  of  men.  Will  you  not  come?" 

Again  there  came  into  Eina's  mind  the  face  of 
the  man  of  mystery. 

"Mrs.  Molair,  I  shall  give  earnest  thought  to 
all  that  you  have  said.  When  the  debate  within 
my  soul  is  over,  I  will  render  my  decision." 

Mrs.  Molair  now  arose  and  took  a  hurried  leave. 
To  her  mind  there  was  no  possible  ground  of  de- 


YET  DEBATING.  53 

bate  as  to  whether  it  was  best  to  be  identified  with 
the  life  of  the  white  people  of  the  South  socially, 
and  the  fact  that  Eina,  with  conditions  made  plain 
tc  her,  could  stop  to  debate  the  question,  con- 
vinced her  that  Eina  must  be  suffering  from  some 
form  of  mental  derangement. 

"Why,  good  morning,"  said  Mrs.  Molair,  back- 
ing out  of  the  door,  looking  intently  at  Eina  as 
at  one  who  had  lost  her  reason. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SHE  INVESTIGATES. 

HIS  is  awful!  This  is  simply  awful!" 
Thus  murmured  Clotille  Strange  as  she, 
stood  upon  Eina's  porch  stung,  dazed,  ir- 
resolute as  the  result  of  the  reading  of  a  little 
note  from  Eina  which  Uncle  Jack  had  handed 
her  at  the  door,  instead  of  granting  her  admission 
to  see  her  friend. 

The  sympathetic  Uncle  Jack  had  surmised  that 
all  was  not  going  well,  and  his  funereal  counten- 
ance as  he  met  Clotille  had  been  in  keeping  with 
the  sombre  news  contained  in  the  note,  although 
of  course  he  knew  nothing  of  its  contents.  He 
now  stood  pitying  in  his  heart  the  p-erturbed  Clo- 
tille and  resolved  to  be  of  assistance  to  her  if 
he  could.  As  Eina  was  in  the  house  within  hear- 
ing distance  Uncle  Jack  could  not  say  what  he 
desired,  so  he  resorted  to  a  ruse  to  get  an  oppor- 
tunity to  whisper  to  Clotille. 

"W'y  Miss  Clotille,  look  at  yer  harniss.  Who 
hitched  up  fur  yer?"  said  Uncle  Jack  loudly,  mov- 
ing off  towards  Clotille's  buggy  and  beckoning 
for  her  to  follow.  Going  to  the  far  side  of  the 
horse  and  having  ClotiHe  do  the  same  so  that 
Eina,  if  peering  through  the  window  blinds,  might 
not  see  what  was  going  on,  Uncle  Jack  tinkered 
with  the  harness  while  Clotille  read  to  him  the 
little  note  from  Eina,  which  ran  as  follows : 


SHE  INVESTIGATES.  55 

"My  Own  Dear  Clotille. 

"You  know  how  dearly  I  love  you  and  how  I 
crave  your  companionship.  You  will  understand, 
therefore,  that  there  is  tremendous  pressure  on 
me  from  some  source  to  prompt  me  to  deny  my- 
s-elf  the  boon  of  your  companionship  for  some 
days — just  how  many  T  cannot  say.  When  wo 
meet  I  will  explain  all.  For  the  time  being  I 
must  have  solitude,  must  travel  to  the  very  heart 
of  things  and  let  my  darkened  soul  catch  for  it- 
self the  light  of  life.  The  world  confuses  me, 
but  I  know  that  there  is  peace  somewhere.  What- 
ever else  betides,  I  am  Clotille's  one  friend, 

"ElNA" 

"I  understands  it  all  now.  Dem  Molairs  hez 
been  wukin'  on  her.  Mistah  Molair  wuz  heah 
las'  night  an'  Missus  Molair  wuz  heah  dis  mornin'. 
She's  fine  blood  an*  dey  wants  her  in  dare  race 
I  'specks.  Deys  'bout  got  her  min'  sorter  mixed 
up  an'  she  'bout  doan'  know  whether  ter  be  er 
white  lady  er  er  colored  'oman,  es  dey  puts  it. 
'Twouldent  s'prise  me  if  dis  heah  same  lady  ain't 
some  queen  er  nuther  passin'  roun'  under  some 
'sumed  name,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  nodding  his  head 
knowingly. 

"Oh,  is  that  it,  you  think?"  said  Clotille,  begin- 
ning to  grasp  the  meaning  of  the  note  which 
had  been  handed  her. 

"But  I'll  watch  dem  Molairs.  Trus'  dat  ter  me. 
Fs  goin'  ter  slip  Baug  Peppers  out  heah  an'  ef 
he  gits  er  chance  he'll  switch  things  back." 


56  POINTING  THE   WAY. 

Clotille  felt  like  hugging  and  kissing  Uncle  Jack. 
In  fact,  to  tell  the  truth  on  the  sad,  yet  happy, 
girl,  she  did  that  very  thing.  At  the  very  mo- 
ment when  she  felt  her  structure  crumbling  in 
a  most  unexpected  manner,  here  was  dear  old 
Uncle  Jack  to  prop  it  up. 

Nothing  could  be  more  damaging  to  Clotille's 
hopes  than  for  Eina  to  cross  over  into  the  white 
race,  for  then  she  would  be  far  removed  from 
the  possibility  of  marrying  Baug  and  taking  him 
out  of  her  way. 

Assured  by  Uncle  Jack  that  he  would  watch  over 
Eina  and  seek  to  thwart  the  purposes  of  all  who 
sought  to  have  her  turn  her  back  on  the  colored 
world,  Clotille  rode  home  with  a  somewhat  lighter 
heart  than  that  which  had  throbbed  in  her  body 
immediately  after  reading  Eina's  note. 

Eina  was  puzzled.  She  soon  made  the  dis- 
covery that  Baug  Peppers  affiliated  with  the  col- 
ored people  socially  and  her  great  desire  to  un- 
ravel the  mystery  of  his  face  threw  itself  on 
the  side  of  her  entering  the  colored  race. 

"But  does  this  man  do  himself  justice  to  re- 
main classified  as  a  Negro?  He  could  go  else- 
where and  pass  for  white  easily.  Would  I  not 
be  doing  right  to  become  acquainted  with  him 
and  persuade  him  for  his  own  good  to  go  to  some 
other  part  of  the  world  and  pass  as  a  white  man  ?" 
asked  Eina  of  herself. 

Eina  now  decided  to  go  deeply  into  this  ques- 
tion of  race,  and  for  the  time  being  to  withhold 


SHE  INVESTIGATES.  57 

herself  from  social  affiliation  with  either  race. 
She  came  to  the  conclusion  that  through  the  un- 
tutored Uncle  Jack,  a  child  of  nature,  she  would 
seek  to  get  at  the  real  essence,  the  ground  work 
of  the  Negro  soul,  its  basal  philosophy  of  life. 
She  decided,  therefore,  to  encourage  Uncle  Jack 
to  talk,  to  enter  with  zest  into  his  chatter  and 
to  have  him  thus  in  artless  fashion  lay  bare  his 
soul. 

In  keeping  with  this  purpose,  one  afternoon 
when  Uncle  Jack's  work  was  done  and  he  was 
sitting  in  a  chair  in  the  back  yard,  under  the 
shade  of  a  tree,  with  his  legs  crossed  and  a  pipe 
in  his  mouth,  Eina  drew  near,  dragging  a  chair 
with  her.  She  took  a  seat  in  front  of  Uncle  Jack 
with  a  view  to  having  him  entertain  her,  while 
she  studied  him  and  through  him  his  kind. 

"Uncle  Jack,  one  thing  has  always  somewhat 
puzzled  me.  When  the  Civil  War  was  going  on, 
why  did  you  colored  people  stay  in  the  fields  and 
feed  the  armies  that  were  fighting  to  keep  you 
in  slavery?"  asked  Eina. 

"Wai,  Miss,  I  kaint  speak  fur  de  res'  uv  de 
cullud  folks.  I  kin  sorter  'splain  ter  yer  'bout 
myself.  I  'membah  wal  whut  er  fix  I  wuz  in 
w'en  de  war  broke  out.  Suah,  dar  wuz  er  mighty 
wrestlin'  in  my  heart.  Yer  see  I  allus  'predated 
good  treatment.  Er  dog  'ull  do  dat.  Wal,  my 
ole  massa  an'  ole  missus  sartainly  treated  me 
wal,  treated  me  wal.  Miss,  I  didun't  hab  none 
uv  de  hard  times  I  heah  udder  cullud  folks  talkin' 


58  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

er  bout.  But  bless  yer  life,  honey,  some  uv  'urn 
had  'urn  an'  had  'um  bad,  too.  Yer  see,  I  b'longed 
ter  quality  white  folks,  shuah  'nough  ladies  an' 
gemmens,  an'  dey's  allus  nice!  See?"  Uncle  Jack 
arose,  lowered  his  head  respectfully  to  one  side 
and  said  with  humility,  "Miss  Eina,  I  ain't  as 
ellerquent  wid  dis  pipe  ez  I  would  be  ef  I  had  er 
chaw  uv  terbacky.  Ef  yer  please,  I'll  go  git  me 
er  chaw." 

Eina  excused  him  to  prepare  for  a  more  elo- 
quent delivery.  Duly  equipped  Uncle  Jack  re- 
turned and  resumed  his  story. 

"I  wuz  'splainin'  'bout  whut  er  fix  I  wuz  in 
w'en  de  war  broke  out.  Ef  evah  I  felt  like  cryin' 
w'en  I  didun't,  it  wuz  w'en  I  wuz  holdin'  massa's 
sturrup  ez  he  wuz  mountin'  his  war  hoss  ter  ride 
ter  de  army." 

"Cry  for  what,  Uncle  Jack?"  asked  Eina. 

"Three  things  in  one.  Fust,  'cause  he  wuz  goin'. 
Secon',  'cause  his  goin'  kep'  me  frum  goin'  ter 
fight  ergin  him.  Third,  'cause  my  missus  an'  her 
two  dorters  wuz  so  sad  lak." 

"How  do  you  reconcile  those  sentiments,  Uncle 
Jack,  and  how  did  his  going  affect  your  going? 
It  would  seem  that  his  going  would  have  made 
your  going  the  easier." 

"Yer  doan'  understan'  cullud  folks,  miss.  Our 
hearts  tek  in  de  good  frum  ev'ry  sose.  My  massa 
had  been  kin'  ter  me,  so  I  hated  ter  see  him  leave. 
I  wanted  ter  be  er  free  man  an'  ter  he'p  dem  dat 
wuz  tryin'  ter  free  me.  Wid  him  leavin'  I  couldn't 


SHE  INVESTIGATES.  59 

go,  caus'  harm  might  er  come  ter  my  missus  an* 
her  two  dorters.  Ef  I  could  'uv  got  er  way  fust,  ez 
I  wuz  tryin'  ter  do,  de  'sponserbility  uv  de  f ambly 
would  er  been  on  him,  but  ez  he  beat  me  ter  it 
de  'sponserbility  wuz  on  me,  an*  I  had  ter  stay." 

"But,  Uncle  Jack,  somehow  I  thought  that  you 
were  a  soldier.  How  do  you  account  for  your  mil- 
itary carriage  ?" 

"Hah,  hah,"  laughed  Uncle  Jack,  his  dark  face 
beaming  with  pride.  "No,  miss,  yer  is  er  leetul 
wrong  dare.  I  ain't  got  no  miluntary  kerridge 
an'  ain't  had  none.  I  seen  ole  Genul  Grant  ridin' 
in  one  wunst,  but  I  nevah  got  so  high  ez  ter 
hab  er  kerridge.  I  ain't  nebbar  had  er  miluntary 
kerridge." 

Eina  smiled  at  Uncle  Jack's  misapprehension 
of  her  remark  but  did  not  enlighten  him  as  to  her 
true  meaning. 

Uncle  Jack  sat  for  a  few  seconds  musing  upon 
the  exaggerated  reports  of  his  generalship  that 
had  evidently  gone  North,  to  be  picked  up  by 
Miss  Eina. 

"Goin'  back  ter  whar  I  lef  off,"  Uncle  Jack 
resumed,  "ole  massa  rode  erway.  I  stayed  behin' 
an'  looked  atter  der  wimmins  wid  er  eagle  eye. 
Ole  missus  b'lieved  in  Jack,  b'lieved  in  him  wid 
all  her  soul.  I  slep'  at  her  do'  w'en  eber  de 
Yankees  wuz  er  round.  Yes,  dey  b'lieved  in  Jack. 
An'  fore  God,  I'd  er  died  lak  a  cur  dog  fo'e  I'd  er 
let  any  scoundrel  tech  er  stran'  uv  hair  on  enny  uv 
'urn's  head." 


60  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

Uncle  Jack  now  paused  and  dropped  his  head. 
Tears  came  streaming  down  the  old  man's  cheeks. 

"What  is  the  matter  ?"  inquired  Eina,  anxiously. 

In  broken  tones  he  said :  "I  did  wanter  so  bad 
ter  han'  ole  missus  an'  her  'chillun  back  ter  ole 
massa  jes'  as  he  lef '  'um  wid  me,  but  wuk  an'  pray, 
pray  an'  wuk  ez  hard  ez  I  could,  dey  jes'  wouldn't 
stay  in  de  worl'  till  ole  massa  got  back.  Dey  took 
sick  one  by  one  an'  died.  Oh,  ef  I  didn't  pray  an' 
groan  for  de  Lawd  ter  spar'  'um,  no  botty  evah  did. 
I  wanted  'um  ter  live  ter  see  ole  massa  ergin  so 
dey  could  tell  him  how  good  an'  kin'  Jack  wuz. 
But  dey  died;  dey  died." 

Uncle  Jack's  chin  fell  over  on  his  breast  and 
the  tears  rolled  down  his  black  face  with  as  much 
fluency  as  though  those  mourned  were  of  his 
own  family  and  their  corpses  were  even  then 
in  the  next  room. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  PARSON  FLEES. 

INA  arose  and  went  into  her  room  to  think 
over  what  Uncle  Jack  had  said. 

"It  would  seem  to  me  that  a  people  with 
the  kind  of  heart  indicated  by  this  old  man  cannot 
at  base  be  bad,"  mused  Eina.  "I  doubt  whether 
anywhere  in  the  world  its  kindliness  of  spirit  can 
be  duplicated,"  she  reflected. 

She  determined  after  supper  to  probe  deeper 
into  Uncle  Jack's  heart. 

In  due  time  Uncle  Jack  summoned  Eina  to  her 
supper,  which  was  so  well  prepared  that  it  stimu- 
lated her  rather  feeble  appetite.  As  Uncle  Jack 
stood  by  and  observed  that  his  cooking  pleased 
Eina,  a  smile  of  deep  satisfaction  came  upon  his 
sober  face. 

"Uncle  Jack,  you  were  once  a  slave,  but  you 
seem  to  be  as  serene  as  an  angel  now.  How  did 
you  manage  to  get  along?  Your  nature  does  not 
seem  to  have  been  at  all  soured." 

Uncle  Jack  dropped  into  a  chair  in  the  corner 
of  the  dining-room  and  said : 

"Dare  wuz  er  little  sumpin'  dat  I  perscivered 
w'en  I  wuz  er  kid  dat  he'ped  me  outen  many  er 
tight  place,"  began  Uncle  Jack.  "I  allus  did  have 
er  way  uv  notussing  things  an'  puttin'  one  an' 
one  togedder.  Ez  er  boy,  I  notussed  dat  dare 


62  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

warn't  nevah  no  harm  in  er  white  man  ef  you 
could  jes'  git  him  ter  laf  right  good'  an  hard.  Ef 
yer  will  let  me,  I  will  gib  yer  er  sample  uv  how 
I  could  allus  make  my  git  by. 

"Wai,  w'en  I  wuz  er  youngster  I  wuz  de  house 
boy  an*  allus  had  ter  wait  on  de  tabul. 

"One  Sunday  de  ole  missus  an'  her  two  dorters 
went  visitin'  an'  lef  only  de  ole  man  at  home. 
Wai,  we  had  duck  fur  dinner  dat  day.  I  knowed 
ole  massa  wouldn't  eat  but  one  leg,  so  I  pitched 
in  an'  cut  one  leg  off,  jes'  ez  smooth  an'  nice,  an' 
et  it  up  'fore  dinner. 

"Yer  see,  I  allus  carved  de  duck,  an'  ez  dare  wuz 
only  one  leg  ter  be  called  fur,  dare  would  be  no 
missin'  uv  de  udder  leg.  Massa  nevah  et  more  dan 
one  duck  leg  at  er  meal. 

"Wai,  all  wuz  goin'  'long  nice  untel  er  few 
minutes  'fore  dinner.  Here  comes  erlong  ole 
Majah  Dinkins  an'  his  boy  ter  visit  us.  Wai,  sah, 
I  could  'uve  choked  dat  kid  fur  comin'  tell  he  wuz 
blue,  fur  he  had  et  wid  us  erf  ore  an'  he  allus  called 
fur  er  duck  leg,  w'en  we  had  duck.  W'en  I  saw 
dat  boy  I  begin  ter  trimble  in  my  boots,  fur  I 
knowed  I  wuz  shuah  goin'  ter  hab  trouble. 

"At  las'  ev'ry  botty  wuz  'roun  de  tabul,  an'  de 
duck  wuz  bein'  passed  'round.  One  leg  had  been 
handed  out  ter  ole  man  Dinkins,  an*  w'en  de  boy 
wuz  retched  he  wuz  axt  whut  he  wanted.  'A  leg, 
please,'  squealed  de  leetul  villun  in  er  pipin'  voice. 
Shuah,  miss,  I  tell  yer  I  could  'uve  choked  dat 
chap  almos'  ter  def. 


THE    PARSON    FLEES.  63 

"I  had  stood  lookin'  kinder  mad  at  him,  try  in' 
ter  sorter  skeer  him,  so  he'd  be  'f  raid  ter  eat  whut 
I'd  cooked,  but  he  didunt  bluff  'tall.  Wai,  dare 
I  wuz.  Ole  massa,  he  looked  all  'round  de  duck 
an'  den  hollered,  'Jack,  whar  ez  dat  udder  leg?' 

"  'Massa,  ter  tell  yer  de  truf,  dat  duck  didun't 
hab  but  one  leg,'  "  sez  I. 

"  'Wai,  we'll  see  'bout  dat  atter  dinner,'  said 
ole  massa. 

"W'en  dinner  wuz  ovah,  ole  massa,  Majah  Din- 
kins,  his  boy  an'  me  went  down  ter  de  pawn  whar 
de  ducks  all  wuz.  On  our  way  down  dare,  ole 
massa  said  ter  me,  'Now  yer  got  ter  show  me 
er  nudder  duck  wid  jes'  one  leg  er  else  dare  is 
trouble  brewin.' 

"Wall,  sah,  yer  may  jes'  guess  how  I  wuz  feelin'. 
My  heart  wuz  goin'  pitty  patty,  pitty  patty. 

"As  de  Lawd  would  hab  it,  w'en  we  got  ter  de 
pawn  ev'ry  las'  duck  wuz  standin'  on  one  leg  wid 
de  udder  leg  hid. 

"Sez  I  ter  ole  massa,  kinder  quiet  lak,  so  I 
wouldn't  skeer  de  ducks,  'Now,  Massa,  whut'd  I 
tell  yer,  ev'ry  duck  heah  is  got  one  leg.'  Ole 
massa  hollered  right  loud,  'Shew!  shew!'  an'  ev'ry 
duck  drapt  de  udder  leg  frum  under  his  wing. 
'See  thar,  Jack,  I  got  yer,  I  got  yer,'  sez  ole  massa. 

"  'Now,  hole  on,  massa ;  hole  on,  lemme  axe  yer 
jes'  one  qusshun,  jes'  one  qusshun,  massa,'  sez  I. 
Dem  ducks  showed  de  udder  leg  w'en  yer  said 
'Shew!  Shew!'  Now,  massa,  did  yer  say  'shew! 
shew!'  ter  dat  duck  on  de  tabul? 


64  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"Ole  massa  lak  ter  laf  fit  ter  kill  hisself,  an* 
ole  Majah  Dinkins  jes'  stood  up  an'  hollered.  De 
kid  looked  fus'  at  ole  massa,  den  at  his  papa, 
an'  den  at  me.  I  didun't  hab  nothin'  agin'  him 
den,  'cause  w'en  ever  massa  could  be  got  ter  laf, 
trouble  wuz  all  ovah. 

"An'  w'en  yer  come  ter  think  uv  it,  de  powah 
uv  de  cullud  man  ter  start  er  laf  hez  kep'  down 
er  worl'  uv  trouble  in  dis  Souf  Ian'.  De  elluphunt 
pertecks  hisself  wid  his  snoot,  de  dog  makes 
his  gitby  wid  his  teef,  de  bee  makes  yer  'speck 
hisself  wid  er  sting,  an'  de  cullud  man  hez  been 
takin'  keer  uv  hisself  wid  er  joke,  at  leas'  dats  de 
way  I  got  er  long  mos'ly." 

When  Uncle  Jack  had  finished  his  narrative 
he  dropped  his  head  and  seemed  to  be  engaged 
in  meditation  of  some  humorous  incident,  judging 
from  the  chuckle  that  now  and  then  escaped. 
Eina  sat  waiting  for  him  to  share  with  her  that 
which  was  amusing  him,  but  when  it  seemed  that 
he  was  going  to  have  all  the  laugh  to  himself, 
she  said: 

"Now,  Uncle  Jack,  that  is  hardly  fair.  Share 
with  me.  At  what  are  you  laughing  now?" 

"Dare  wuz  er  thing  I  done  wunst  w'en  I  wuz  er 
boy  dat  I  ain't  nevah  got  ovah,  Miss  Eina ;  nevah 
hez,"  said  Uncle  Jack. 

"Now  what  is  that,  Uncle  Jack?  One  would 
think  from  your  solemn  face  that  you  had  always 
been  good,"  said  Eina. 


THE   PARSON    FLEES.  65 

"Dare  is  whar  my  face  ain't  'zackly  curreck  den, 
miss.  I  had  my  sheer  uv  'ole  Nick'  in  me. 

"Now  fur  an  ercount  uv  my  bad  doin's.  My  ole 
massa  didun't  b'lieve  much  in  preachers.  He  wuz 
ergin  slav'ry  an*  would  lak  ter  'uve  turnt  all 
hissen  loose,  but  he  didun't  see  his  way  clear  ter 
do  so,  'dout  de  ballunce  jined  wid  him.  Ole  massa 
felt  dat  he  jes'  mus'  keep  up  ef  he  didun't  do 
nuthin'  else. 

"He  tried  ter  git  de  preachers  ter  preach  ergin' 
slav'ry,  but  somehow  he  couldn't  get  'um  ter  tech 
it.  Dey  wuz  shy  uv  dat  qusshun  'cepin'  w'en  dey 
wuz  preachin'  'Survunt  'bey  yer  massa.' 

"Wai,  ennyhow,  my  ole  massa  didun't  lak  er 
preacher  fur  nuthin'  much,  an'  didun't  go  ter 
church.  One  day  er  sorter  'vangelis'  preacher 
come  through  our  way  an'  in  his  sermont  he 
kinder  teched  on  slav'ry,  speakin'  ergin  it.  My 
missus  wuz  at  church  dat  day  by  herself ,  an'  she 
thort  dat  her  husban'  would  lak  dis  heah  preacher 
caus'  he  kinder  preacht  his  docterin'  an'  would 
er  done  more  ef  he  had  got  more  amens  an'  lesser 
frowns.  My  missus  brought  him  home  ter  din- 
ner dat  Sunday,  an'  w'en  I  seed  her  comin'  wid 
him  I  got  skeert  ter  death.  Yer  see  I  knowed  'bout 
jes'  whut  de  fambly  allus  et,  an'  some  times  I 
would  tek  out  der  remainder  fust  an'  eat  it 
myself.  W'en  I  saw  dis  man  comin'  I  could  jes' 
tell  frum  his  lean,  hungry  look  dat  dare  wuzun't 
goin'  ter  be  no  remainder,  an'  lo  I  had  done  et  up 
de  remainder  already.  Now,  dare  wuz  er  shuah 


66  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

'nough  jam  fur  er  pore  innersint  cullud  boy.  I 
hated  ter  do  whut  I  am  goin'  ter  tell  yer  erbout, 
but  I  had  ter. 

"It  wuz  er  warm  day  an'  ole  missus  had  de 
preacher  ter  set  out  in  de  yard  under  er  big  oak. 
I  watched  my  pints  kinder  close.  Missus  wanted 
er  chance  ter  talk  wid  massa  by  hisself  so  she 
mout  tell  him  dat  dis  preacher  wuz  ergin  slavery 
an*  he  could  erford  ter  treat  him  er  leetul  bettah 
dan  wuz  common  ter  him.  She  foun'  ole  massa 
an'  took  him  way  out  in  de  back  yard  ter  de 
grin'  stone  ter  grin'  de  carvin'  knife. 

"While  massa  wuz  grin'in'  erway,  missus  tole 
him  'bout  bringin'  de  preacher,  an'  massa  fairly 
cussed.  I  knowed  massa  an'  knowed  jes'  'bout 
how  long  he'd  stay  hot  w'en  missus  wuz  talkin' 
ter  him,  so  I  'sided  ter  ack  at  wunst.  I  runs 
out  ter  de  preacher  an'  says,  'Mistah,  kaint  yer 
help  er  pore  fambly  out?  Come  quick.'  I  led  him 
ter  de  corner  uv  de  house  an'  said,  Teep  er  'round 
an'  see  massa  'bout  ter  kill  missus,  an'  w'en  he 
hez  done  done  dat  he  is  goin'  ter  come  an'  kill  yer. 
Won't  yer  please  go  an'  stop  massa  ?' 

"Jes'  den  massa  was  at  his  hottis'  an'  wuz  layin' 
off  his  han's  kinder  wile  lak. 

"  'Whut  he  wanter  kill  me  fur?'  de  tremblin' 
preacher  axt. 

"  'He  doan'  lak  preachers  an'  you  done  come 
home  wid  his  wife,'  I  says. 

"Wai,  sah,  dat  pore  man  turnt  all  sorts  er  colors. 
He  wheeled  er  roun'  an'  shot  er  cross  dat 


THE    PARSON    FLEES.  67 

field  lak  er  streak  uv  greased  lightnin'  wid  me 
right  atter  him  hollerin'  fur  life  an*  death.  Hear- 
in'  me  hollerin'  an*  seem'  de  race,  massa  broke 
out  ter  try  ter  ketch  us  ter  fin'  out  de  trouble. 
De  preacher  looked  er  roun'  an'  saw  massa  run- 
nin'  an'  de  knife  gleamin'  in  de  air.  He  twisted 
outen  dat  long  tail  coat,  recht  up  an'  grabbed  his 
hat  an'  by  gimminy,  ef  dat  eldah  didun't  run  ain't 
nobody  evah  run  since  de  worl'  comminced.  De 
scriptur'  sez  'Run  de  race  wid  patience/  but  dat 
eldah  busted  dat  scriptur'  wide  open,  fur  dare 
shuah  wuzun't  no  patience  in  de  way  he  run. 

"Yer  may  not  b'lieve  it,  but  w'en  dat  man 
come  ter  our  ten  rail  fence  he  leapt  it  'thout  put- 
tin'  his  hand  'ter  it,  an'  had  er  clear  foot  ter  spare. 
Talk  erbout  er  man  bein'  called  an'  'spired  ter 
preach,  dat  man  wuz  called  an'  'spired  ter  run 
dat  day  shuah  ez  yer  is  bawn  ter  die. 

"Wai,  sah,  I  wuz  so  tickled  dat  I  fell  down 
flat  an'  had  ter  stuff  my  mouf  full  uv  nasty  weeds 
ter  keep  frum  lafin'.  Massa  come  up  wid  me  an' 

axt  me  whut  in  de  wuz  de  mattah  wid 

me.  De  tears  wuz  comin'  outen  my  eyes.  Dey 
wuz  tears  uv  lafin',  but  massa  thort  dey  wuz  tears 
uv  sorry.  I  tole  massa  er  lie.  I  tole  him  dat  de 
preacher  wuz  so  hungry  dat  he  wuz  feert  dat  he 
wouldn't  git  ernough  eatin'  wid  de  ballunce  an'  dat 
he  took  an'  stole  de  fattis'  chicken  an'  run  off 
wid  it.  Den  massa  wuz  mad  shuah  'nough  an'  he 
tole  missus  ter  nevah  bring  er  nuther  preacher  ter 
his  house. 


68  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"Ez  fur  de  chicken,  I  had  et  de  remainder  ez 
I  tole  you,  an*  I  had  hid  de  ballunce  ter  make  de 
tale  on  de  preacher  pan  out  all  right.  Wen  I  got  er 
chance  I  got  de  ballunce  uv  dat  chicken  an*  sent  it 
ter  keep  company  wid  de  remainder  whut  I  had 
already  et." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

UNCLE  JACK'S  CONVERSION. 

|HEN  Uncle  Jack  was  through  with  his 
narrative  he  began  to  clear  away  the  dishes, 
Eina  remaining  to  keep  him  company  the 
while.  When  this  task  was  over,  Uncle  Jack  said : 
"Miss  Eina,  ef  yer  doan'  keer  1*11  sing  er  hime  an* 
hab  er  prarr  wid  yer  fo'  we  goes  ter  our  restin' 
places." 

Eina  assented  and  the  two  now  bowed  while 
Uncle  Jack  prayed.  In  his  prayer  there  was 
manifest  the  simple  faith  of  a  child,  a  belief 
in  the  miraculous  power  of  God  and  his  readi- 
ness to  resort  to  the  miraculous.  To  Uncle 
Jack  heaven  was  a  reality,  just  over  the  way, 
and  as  he  talked  of  it  Eina  could  catch  the 
gleam  of  the  gold  on  the  streets,  hear  the  angel 
shouts  and  taste  of  the  nectar  flowing  from  the 
throne  of  God. 

Uncle  Jack's  plea  for  protection  through  the 
night  and  for  light  to  souls  that  were  'gropin' 
in  de  dark'  was  freighted  with  all  the  eloquence 
of  a  plea  born  of  a  whole  heart,  and  when  he  arose 
the  tears  were  streaming  down  Eina's  cheeks. 

Uncle  Jack  very  solemnly  bade  her  good  night, 
evidently  not  desiring  to  say  or  do  anything  that 
would  disturb  the  solemn  frame  of  mind  in  which 
he  now  found  himself  and  Eina. 


70  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

"De  sperrit  is  on  me  an*  I  mus'  let  it  stay  long 
ez  it  will,"  was  Uncle  Jack's  thought. 

The  next  morning  at  breakfast  Eina  said,  "Un- 
cle Jack,  tell  me  how  you  professed  religion,  won't 
you?" 

"Yer  axes  me  'bout  my  gittin'  'ligion,  an'  I  is 
shuah  goin'  ter  tell  yer,"  responded  Uncle  Jack. 

"Yer  see,  Miss  Eina,  in  slav'ry  times  de  cullud 
folks  had  ter  set  up  in  de  galluries  at  de  white 
churches,  an'  frum  dat  fack  an'  f rum  bein'  slaves 
dey  kinder  thort  dat  God  had  er  kinder  secon' 
han'  intruss  in  dare  gittin'  'ligion.  Dey  felt  kind 
uv  humble  lak'  an'  thort  it  took  er  whole  lot  ter 
git  God  ter  look  at  'um.  De  freeness  uv  salva- 
tion wuzun't  talked  erbout  much.  De  hardniss 
uv  gittin'  ter  God  wuz  de  nachel  thort  uv  er 
pore  slave.  Dare  is  er  heap  in  whut  er  man  jes' 
nachally  thinks,  jes'  nachally  thinks. 

"Wai,  gittin'  'ligion  got  ter  be  er  hard  thing 
'mongst  de  slaves,  an'  it  wuz  kep'  up  atter  free- 
dom. Dare  wuz  er  mourners'  bench  fixed  fur 
yer,  an'  yer  had  ter  go  ter  dat,  night  atter  night. 
Yer  had  ter  be  chased  by  de  debbul,  had  ter  pay  er 
visit  ter  hell,  had  ter  be  shuck  ovah  hell  holdin' 
ter  er  spider  web,  an'  had  ter  pray  in  er  grabe 
yard.  Now,  it  wuz  jes'  on  dat  las'  pint  whar  I  got 
my  fall  down.  I  jes'  couldent  come  through  at  de 
mourners'  bench  an'  wuz  tole  ter  go  ter  de 
grabe  yard  atter  night. 

"In  dem  days  I  had  er  fine  dog  name 
Wolf.  He  was  called  dat  'cause  he  looked  jes' 


UNCLE  JACK'S  CONVERSION.  71 

'zackly  lak  er  wolf.  One  night  erbout  dark 
I  started  out  towards  de  grabe  yard  ter  pray, 
an',  'thout  my  knowin'  it,  dat  dog  followed 
me.  I  felt  all  right  till  I  comminced  ter  git  'mong 
dem  trees.  All  dat  stillness  seemed  ter  settle 
right  down  on  me,  an*  I  could  heah  myself  breath- 
in',  an*  feel  myself  gittin'  er  leetul  hot.  But  I 
sez  ter  myself,  Tse  goin'  ter  stick  it  out,  an'  run 
jes'  w'en  I  kaint  he'p  it.' 

"I  started  ter  kneel  down  an'  er  big  ole  rabbit 
jumped  up  right  berhin'  me,  an,  'fore  de  Lawd  it 
lak  ter  skeert  der  life  outen  me.  W'en  I  foun' 
out  whut  it  wuz  I  furgot  whut  I  come  out  fur  an' 
cussed  lak  a  sailor.  Yes,  miss,  I  is  sorry  ter  say 
it,  but  I  cussed. 

"Wai,  dat  grieved  me  ter  my  heart.  Den  I 
'termined  dat  I  wuz  shuah  boun'  fur  hell  ef  I 
didun't  do  sumpin'.  So  I  gits  down  on  my  knees 
an'  shets  bofe  my  eyes  right  tight.  But  ter  save 
my  life  I  couldn't  think  'bout  God  fur  won- 
derin'  whut  mought  be  movin'  'round  in  de  grabe 
yard  nigh  unter  me.  Now,  heahs  how  I  come  ter 
allus  b'lieve  dat  a  man  should  be  one  thing  or 
tuther.  I  tried  ter  d'vide  up  twix'  God  an'  my- 
self. While  bofe  eyes  wuz  still  shet  I  'grees  wid 
myself  right  quick  ter  compermise  wid  my 
skeert  feelin's  an'  keep  one  eye  shet  fur  God's 
sake  an'  one  eye  open  fur  Jack's  sake.  I  opened 
one  eye  an'  lo!  dare  wuz  standin'  right  en  front 
uv  me  whut  looked  lak  er  great  big  wolf.  It  wuz 


72  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

•j 

my  dog  ter  be  shuah,  but  ez  I  looked  at  dat  ani- 
mule  I  forgot  dat  I  evah  had  er  dog  in  de  worl'. 

"Talk  erbout  er  man's  bein'  skeert,  dat'  ain't 
no  name  fur  whut  I  wuz.  I  thort  dat  wolf  wuz 
de  very  debbul  hisself  come  atter  me  for  sinnin' 
an*  cussin'.  Holler?  W'y,  'oman,  dem  dead  folks 
ain't  goin't  ter  heah  no  more  sich  hollerin'  ez  I 
done  till  Gabrill  hisself  makes  de  noise.  An'  ter 
tell  de  trufe  he'll  hatter  blow  dat  trumpit  mighty 
loud  ter  git  by  whut  I  done  wid  my  nachal  mouf. 
An'  de  way  I  hollered  skeert  me  ergin.  I  sorter 
feert  dat  any  sleepin'  ghost  jes'  mus'  er  heered 
me.  An'  ef  evah  yer  saw  er  man  run,  dis  heah 
cullud  man  whut  yer  see  heah  shuah  did  run. 

"Atter  I  had  got  er  good  ways  er  long  I  kinder 
looked  back  an'  dare  wuz  dat  debbul  right  berhin' 
me.  Wai,  sah,  frum  dat  time  on  it  wuz  runnin' 
an'  hollerin'  an'  hollerin'  an'  runnin'. 

"I  broke  right  straight  fur  de  church  whar  de 
people  wuz  all  getherin'.  Dey  heered  me  comin', 
an',  'owan,  de  noise  de  folks  did  make  shoutin' 
fur  joy  wuz  er  sight!  Yer  see  dey  thort  I'd  dun 
come  through.  Some  uv  de  sisterin'  in  dey  joy 
tried  ter  meet  and  ketch  me,  but  I  kep'  comin'  tell 
I  got  plum  in  dat  church  an'  fell  on,de  floor. 
Wen  I  come  ter  myself  dey  wuz  all  eroun'  me 
clappin'  han's  and  shoutin'  fur  joy. 

"Now,  I  knowed  dat  dey  would  be  'spectin' 
me  ter  do  sump  in'  w'en  I  got  up.  So  I  jes'  said 
'taint  no  harm  ter  say,  'Glory  ter  God!'  So  I 
hopped  up  clappin'  han's,  sayin',  'Glory  to  God! 


UNCLE  JACK'S  CONVERSION.  73 

Glory  ter  God!  Wai,  dey  all  tuk  it  dat  I  wuz 
converted. 

"I  let  it  stan'  dat  way  ter  keep  frum  skander- 
lizin'  de  meeting  but  I  went  off  ter  talk  ter  er 
white  preacher,  an*  from  him  I  got  de  white  folks 
quiut  kind  uv  'ligion.  But  de  cullud  folks  thort  I 
got  it  dat  night.  Ef  bein'  skeert  uv  whut  I  thort 
wuz  de  debbul  is  gittin'  'ligion,  den  I  more'n  got  it 
dat  night,  I  tell  yer.  But  ef  turnin'  yerself  loose 
bodaciously  an'  sperritually  ovah  ter  de  great 
God  uv  heben  an'  losin'  whut  yer  want  ter  do 
in  whut  he  wants  done,  den  I  mus'  say  dat  my 
'ligion  'rived  ter  me  later  on  w'en  I  made  er  pint 
blank  s'render  in  my  heart." 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE  MAN  APPEARS. 

NCLE  Jack  was  by  no  means  a  fool,  and  soon 
divined  that  Eina  had  some  deep  purpose 
in  having  him  talk.  His  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  conditions  in  the  South,  the  visits  of  Seth 
Molair  and  his  mother,  Eina's  letter  to  Clotille, 
together  with  that  sad,  anxious  look  which  Eina 
was  wearing  on  her  face  fully  assured  Uncle 
Jack  as  to  the  great  battle  that  was  being  fought 
out  in  Eina's  mind. 

True  to  his  promise  to  Clotille,  Uncle  Jack 
planned  to  introduce  the  man  with  the  face  of 
mystery,  Baug  Peppers,  as  a  factor  in  the  con- 
test. 

"Miss  Eina,  I  got  er  leetul  favor  I  wants  ter 
ax  uv  yer,  please,  miss,"  said  Uncle  Jack  to  Eina. 

"Say  on,  Uncle  Jack.  It  will  have  to  be  a  very 
large  favor  for  me  to  thing  of  refusing  you." 

"Thankee,  miss,  thankee.  In  Belrose  dare  is 
er  fine  frien'  uv  mine  whut  I  wants  ter  come 
but  an'  see  whar  I  am  wukin'.  I  wants  him  ter 
take  supper  wid  me  dis  evenin',  an*  I  wants  ter 
know  ef  yer  will  let  me  eat  him  in  de  dinin'  room 
atter  yer  is  done  wid  yer  supper  ?" 

"Are  you  a  cannibal,  Uncle  Jack?"  asked  Eina, 
laughingly. 

"Whut  is  er  kannerbull,  miss,  please,  miss  ? 


THE  MAN  APPEARS.  75 

"A  man  who  eats  men.  You  say  you  want  to 
eat  your  friend  in  the  dining-room." 

"Hah,  hah,  hah,"  laughed  Uncle  Jack  heartily. 
"Dat  is  shuah  er  good  one  on  me.  Wai,  my  frien' 
is  good  'nough  ter  eat." 

"Uncle  Jack,  I  shall  grant  your  request  on  one 
condition,  and  that  is  that  you  allow  me  to  be 
the  waitress  for  the  occasion." 

"Why,  laws  a  mussy,  miss!  Why,  no,  miss. 
Me  ter  hab  yer  ter  wait  on  me!  Nevah,  while 
my  name  is  Jackson  Simpkins  Hezekiah  Morris, 
will  I  'gree  ter  dat  plan." 

"All  right,  then,  Uncle  Jack,"  said  Eina,  seem- 
ing to  yield. 

That  evening  when  Uncle  Jack  and  Baug  had 
sat  down  to  eat  supper,  Eina  appeared  at  the 
door  having  on  the  cap  and  apron  of  a  waitress. 

Uncle  Jack  held  up  his  hands  in  horror,  but 
Baug,  who  had  caught  sight  of  the  beautiful  Eina, 
said,  "Uncle  Jack,  please  be  civilized." 

Eina  looked  so  very  pretty  in  her  waitress'  at- 
tire that  Baug  seemed  to  feel  dimly  that  she  wag 
some  sort  of  an  angel  whom  Uncle  Jack  might 
drive  away.  Baug's  admonition  and  a  look  of  re- 
buke in  Eina's  eye  quieted  Uncle  Jack. 

Baug  was  not  as  a  rule  a  hearty  eater,  but  on 
this  occasion  he  caused  the  food  to  disappear 
from  the  plates  time  and  time  again  in  order 
that  he  might  have  the  waitress  reappear  the 
oftener.  After  Baug  had  eaten  about  all  that 
he  could  possibly  eat,  desiring  to  get  one  more 


76  POINTING  THE   WAY. 

look  at  the  waitress,  he  slipped  the  biscuits  out 
of  the  plate  into  his  pocket  and  called  for  more. 

"My,  Uncle  Jack,  this  is  good  cooking.  Is 
there  any  way,  Uncle  Jack,  I  can  get  out  to  see 
you  a  little  oftener?  I  always  thought  a  great 
deal  of  you,  Uncle  Jack,  as  you  know.  Now  that 
you  are  getting  old  you  need  companionship,"  said 
Baug  very  solicitously,  at  the  close  of  the  meal. 

Uncle  Jack  chuckled  inwardly.  He  knew  that 
it  was  the  comely  waitress  and  not  the  aged  Uncle 
Jack  that  Baug  felt  needed  companionship.  But 
he  appeared  not  to  know  at  what  Baug  was  aim- 
ing. 

"Dis  place  is  kinder  fur  out  an*  I  mout  move 
in  closer  whar  you  could  see  me  of'ner,  Baug," 
said  Uncle  Jack,  innocently  enough. 

"Now,  Uncle  Jack,  I  wouldn't  think  of  leaving 
a  nice  place  like  this.  No,  no.  Stay  here,  Uncle 
Jack,"  said  Baug,  realizing  that  if  Uncle  Jack  left 
that  place  there  might  not  be  an  excuse  for  his 
calling  at  the  house  where  this  waitress  was. 

"All  right,  Baug,  I'll  stay.  I  won't  go.  I  lak 
ter  take  yer  advice."  Then  Uncle  Jack  added 
as  if  incidentally,  "De  girl  dat  waited  on  us  won't 
be  our  waitress  ennymore,"  consoling  himself  with 
the  thought  that  he  was  at  least  technically  tell- 
ing the  truth,  as  Eina  was  not  of  course  the 
family  waitress. 

This  information  seemed  to  throw  a  chill  over 
Baug's  bouyant  spirits,  and  he  grew  silent  for  a 


THE  MAN  APPEARS.  77 

few  moments,  Uncle  Jack  watching  him  slyly  out 
of  the  corners  of  his  eyes. 

"By  the  way,  Uncle  Jack,  I  may  be  rather  busy 
for  a  while,  and  may  not  be  able  to  come  to  see 
you  as  often  as  I  thought  I  would  a  few  mo- 
ments ago,"  said  Baug,  falling  into  the  trap  that 
the  shrewd  Uncle  Jack  had  laid  for  him. 

A  little  later  on  Uncle  Jack  said,  "Baug,  I've 
got  er  good  chance  ter  wuk  at  de  place  whar  de 
waitress  will  be  termorrow,  but  as  yer  'vises  me 
ter  stay  heah,  I'll  stay,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  re- 
signedly. 

"Well,  now,  Uncle  Jack,  I  am  not  infallible. 
It  might  be  best  for  you  to  change,  I  can't  just  say. 
In  fact,  it  might  not  hurt  you,  Uncle  Jack,  to 
always  work  at  the  place  where  the  waitress 
works,  for  evidently  she  is  a  good  judge  of  desi- 
rable places,"  said  Baug.  It  was  as  much  as 
Uncle  Jack  could  do  to  avoid  laughing  outright. 

"Wai,  I'll  tell  yer  whut  I'll  do.  I'll  persuade 
de  waitress  ter  stay  on  heah  er  while  'tell  we  can 
see  further.  I  knows  I  kin  do  dat." 

"Now,  that  is  sensible,  Uncle  Jack.  That  is 
sensible.  By  the  way,  have  you  a  calendar?" 

"Dares  one  on  de  wall." 

"Let  me  see.  Let  me  see.  Well,  no,  no,  no ;  I  am 
not  going  to  be  so  busy  after  all  for  awhile.  In 
fact,  I  need  a  little  rest.  I  guess  I'll  be  out  to  see 
you  often,  Uncle  Jack,  often.  I'll  even  come 
sometimes  in  the  afternoon,  Uncle  Jack." 

"All  right,  Baug,  come  w'en  yer  kin." 


78  POINTING   THE   WAY. 

Baug  now  took  his  departure,  and  Uncle  Jack 
went  out  to  his  stable  to  indulge  in  a  hearty  laugh. 

"Dat  Baug  done  et  ernough  fur  two  men  ter 
night,  an*  de  scamp  is  carryin'  'way  ernough  bis- 
cuits in  his  pockits  ter  start  er  small  size  bakery. 
I  nevah  seed  er  man  so  smote  in  my  life.  Fust 
he  wanted  ter  come  ter  see  me,  den  couldent 
come,  den  could.  Fust  I  mustn't  leave,  den 
mout,  den  mouten't,  all  'cordin'  to  whar  de  wait- 
ress was  goin'  ter  be.  Hah,  hah,  hah.  I  jes' 
twisted  him  'roun'  my  finger. 

"Now,  Baug  wuzun't  tellin'  er  story  nairy  time. 
Wen  er  feller  is  in  love  er  is  fallin'  in  love,  de 
worl'  jes'  nachally  changes  en  er  twinklin'  uv 
er  eye,  'cordin'  to  de  'oman.  Some  sez  de  worl' 
'volves  'roun'  de  sun.  Uncle  Jack  sez  it  'volves 
'roun'  er  nice,  putty  'oman.  Which  is  de  bes' 
'stronimy,  Uncle  Jack's  'stronimy  on  dat  pint,  er 
de  jorgiphys  'stronimy?" 


CHAPTER  X. 
CONROE  DRISCOLL. 

UMMER  has  gone  and  the  green  of  the 
trees  has  given  way  to  the  somber  brown 
of  the  autumn.  The  students  of  the  various 
institutions  of  learning  located  in  Belrose  for  the 
education  of  colored  youths  (there  are  several 
such)  have  arrived  and  settled  down  to  work. 

In  fact,  Thanksgiving  Day  is  here,  and  there 
is  a  great  stir  in  Negro  social  circles  anent  the 
great  annual  football  contest  between  the  two 
leading  institutions  of  learning.  Society  among 
the  whites  is  also  all  agog  over  a  game  to  be 
played  between  the  leading  university  team  of  the 
South  and  the  team  of  one  of  the  North's  great 
schools.  So  the  city  is  alive  with  tooting  horns 
and  college  yells  and  flying  ribbons,  a!nd  gay 
equippages,  carriages  and  buggies,  tandems  and 
tallyhos,  bearing  happy  girls  and  pleasant-looking 
matrons  all  wearing  their  best.  Baug  Peppers  is 
on  hand  with  an  open  barouche  escorting  Eina, 
looking  her  very  loveliest. 

At  one  point  in  the  city  a  congestion  of  vehicles 
occurred,  and  Baug's  carriage  had  to  halt.  It 
stopped  just  behind  one  occupied  by  Seth  Molair 
and  a  lady  who  was  the  acknowledged  beauty  of 
the  city  among  the  whites. 


80  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Seth  Molair,  happening  to  look  around,  saw 
Eina,  whereupon  he  politely  lifted  his  hat  and 
bowed.  Eina  returned  the  bow  with  a  smile. 

The  dense  crowd  of  white  and  colored  people 
at  this  point,  having  its  eyes  focussed  upon  the 
two  carriages  because  of  the  beauty  of  the  occu- 
pants, saw  the  incident,  and  it  created  a  mild  sen- 
sation, it  not  being  customary  for  white  men  to 
practice  the  amenities  toward  colored  women. 

All  eyes  now  turned  towards  Eina,  known  to 
the  crowd  as  a  colored  girl,  because  Baug  was  her 
escort.  There  she  sat,  the  very  essence  of  the 
beautiful,  her  black  eyes  sparkling  and  her  rich 
complexion  tinged  with  a  peach's  red.  So  inno- 
cent, so  open,  so  noble  was  her  appearance  that 
every  suggestion  of  the  sinister  that  arose  be- 
cause a  white  man  had  spoken  to  her  died  on  the 
threshold  of  the  mind  tentatively  entertaining  it. 

As  Baug  Peppers  drove  through  Belrose  that 
day  his  eye  wandered  from  face  to  face,  and,  of 
course,  frequently  back  to  Eina,  and  though  Bel- 
rose  had  turned  out  its  loveliest  creatures,  he 
found  none  to  compare  with  her. 

When  they  entered  the  football  grounds  they 
found  a  great  throng  there,  and  when  the  carriage 
halted  Eina  stood  up  to  gaze  about  her.  Grace 
characterized  the  demeanor  of  the  women,  their 
attire  being  all  that  the  most  fastidious  taste  could 
exact,  while  the  men,  too,  presented  a  splendid 
appearance.  There  was  everywhere  an  air  of 
culture. 


CONROE  DRISCOLL.  81 

"Oh,  who  can  doubt  the  future  of  this  people, 
who  can  be  ashamed  to  be  numbered  with  them 
when  they  gaze  upon  a  scene  like  this?"  murmured 
Eina. 

Baug  now  stood  up  by  Eina's  side,  and  the  two 
presented  so  fine  an  appearance  thai  when  a 
squad  of  marchers  passed  that  way  one  of  the 
group  shouted,  "Three  cheers  for  Peppers  and 
the  queen  that  is  with  him,"  and  the  cheers  were 
given  with  a  hearty  good  will. 

Eina  noted  the  abundant  good  humor  and  the 
enthusiasm  that  characterized  the  throng,  and 
turning  to  Baug,  she  said:  "A  people  so  consti- 
tuted that  they  have  a  well  of  happiness  within 
themselves,  to  which  they  can  repair  when  the 
outer  world  goes  dry,  will  live  long  on  the  earth." 

"Well  spoken,"  Baug  replied. 

Amid  the  cheers  of  their  respective  partisans 
the  two  football  teams  trotted  out  on  the  field  and 
lined  up  for  the  struggle.  Each  of  the  teams  was 
composed  very  largely  of  men  who  were  spending 
their  last  year  in  school,  and  it  was  realized  that 
the  struggle  was  to  be  one  of  the  most  desperate 
ever  played  in  the  history  of  the  two  schools. 

Moving  about  among  the  players  was  the  stal- 
wart form  of  Conroe  Driscoll.  Of  late  Conroe 
had  been  urging  Clotille  to  set  a  time,  approxi- 
mately, for  their  wedding,  but  as  Baug  was  not 
yet  out  of  the  way,  and  as  Miss  Letitia  was  still 
pessimistic  as  to  what  the  colored  man  would 
amount  to  as  a  colored  man,  Clotille,  anxious,  if 


82  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

possible,  to  retain  her  cousin's  favor  and  obtain 
the  fortune,  was  not  disposed  as  yet  to  yield  to 
Conroe's  pleadings. 

Conroe  had  learned  that  his  color  formed  the 
basis  of  Miss  Letitia's  objections  to  him,  and  the 
situation  grieved  him  sorely. 

"It  is  a  downright  shame  for  a  dark  man  to 
have  to  battle  for  the  hand  of  a  dark  girl.  It  is 
an  abomination,"  was  Conroe's  comment  on  the 
situation. 

He  felt  assured  that  Clotille  loved  him,  but  was 
deeply  stung  that  she  should  hold  back  for  a  mo- 
ment on  account  of  the  fortune.  Having  brooded 
over  his  case  a  great  deal,  the  day  of  the  football 
game  found  him  in  a  rather  desperate  mood.  In 
fact,  he  was  largely  disheartened  and  was  rather 
indifferent  in  spirit  as  to  whether  he  did  or  did 
not  continue  the  battle  of  life,  afflicted  as  he  was 
at  such  a  vital  point  by  a  reflection  of  color  preju- 
dice or  color  handicap  within  his  own  race. 

Of  course  there  were  thousands  and  thousands 
of  colored  people  of  light  complexion  who  did 
not  draw  the  color  line,  but  what  advantage  was 
this  fact  to  Conroe  when  the  one  mulatto  who  had 
charge  of  the  girl  of  his  choice  did  draw  the  line  ? 

Conroe  bestowed  upon  the  school  which  he  was 
attending  a  wealth  of  devotion,  being  profoundly 
grateful  to  it  for  having  provided  the  way  by 
means  of  which  he  could  catch  an  inspiring 
glimpse  of  the  upper  realms  of  life,  even  if  he 
was  not  to  be  spared  to  enter  those  realms. 


CONROE  DRISCOLL.  83 

It  was  his  resolve,  therefore,  to  yield  every  atom 
of  his  strength  to  the  task  of  winning  the  victory 
for  his  team  that  day,  and  it  mattered  little  to  him 
as  to  the  price  that  should  be  exacted  of  him,  even 
unto  his  death. 

The  ball  was  put  into  play,  and  it  was  soon 
seen  that  the  two  teams  were  about  evenly 
matched.  The  first  half  of  the  game  was  played 
with  honors  about  evenly  divided,  neither  side 
scoring.  But  when  the  second  half  opened  it  was 
soon  apparent  that  some  mighty  force  was  at  work 
on  Conroe's  team,  and  it  was  Conroe  himself.  In  a 
manner  that  showed  an  utter  disregard  for  his 
own  safety,  and  that  sent  chill  after  chill  of  fear 
tc  Clotille's  heart,  he  played  his  part  in  the  game 
with  almost  superhuman  strength. 

The  opposing  team  was  quick  to  note  where 
their  danger  lay  and  began  to  center  their  at- 
tacks on  Conroe  in  an  effort  to  weaken  him. 
The  fact  that  he  invited  the  attacks  of  the  entire 
opposing  team  did  not  daunt,  but  seemed  rather 
to  please  him.  When  called  upon  to  carry  the 
ball  it  was  a  thrilling  sight  to  all  save  Clotille 
to  see  the  manner  in  which  he  ploughed  along, 
with  the  opposition  in  its  entirety  clinging  to 
him.  When  the  ball  was  in  the  enemy's  hands,  like 
a  steam  engine  he  broke  through  all  oppo- 
sition and  tackled  the  one  carrying  the  ball,  only 
to  be  heavily  piled  upon  himself  by  the  opposition 
team. 

How  Conroe  craved  a  blow  that  would  kill! 


84  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Others  have  died  on  the  football  ground,  and 
why  may  not  I?"  was  the  cry  of  his  heart. 

Conroe's  team  was  nearing  the  goal  line  of 
the  opposition  and  the  ball  was  given  to  him  for 
a  plunge.  A  dash,  a  crush,  a  falling  down,  the 
ball  carried  forward  to  the  danger  line,  and  Con- 
roe  lay  gasping  upon  the  ground.  Water  carriers 
rushed  to  him  with  their  sponges  and  the  doctors 
were  summoned. 

"Two  ribs  broken,  it  seems,"  one  doctor  mur- 
mured to  another. 

"Oh,  is  he  dead?  Is  he  dead?"  cried  Clotille, 
dropping  to  her  knees,  clasping  her  hands,  her 
heart  the  home  of  agony. 

When  Conroe  regained  consciousness  he  sprang 
to  his  feet  and  said :  "I  am  all  right." 

The  doctor  looked  at  him,  saw  that  he  gave  no 
sign  of  being  pained,  and  thought  that  he  had 
possibly  been  mistaken.  The  doctor  suggested 
that  he  leave  the  game,  but  Conroe  said: 

"Oh,  go  away  lady  doctor.  I  am  all  right. 
Get  to  your  places,  boys." 

The  two  teams  now  faced  each  other  for  the 
final  play.  The  time  for  the  game  was  all  but  out 
and  neither  team  had  thus  far  scored.  The  team 
whose  goal  line  was  now  threatened  saw  no  op- 
portunity to  score  against  Conroe's  team,  but 
with  grim  determination  they  awaited  this  final 
assault,  resolved  to  use  every  atom  of  force  in 
their  beings  to  prevent  the  score. 


CONROE  DRISCOLL.  85 

The  captain  had  his  doubts  about  Conroe's  abil- 
ity to  handle  the  ball  at  this  crisis  owing  to  the 
manner  in  which  he  had  been  battered.  He  turned 
to  catch  the  gleam  of  Conroe's  eye  to  see  whether 
the  latter  felt  equal  to  the  task. 

"See  that  I  get  that  ball,"  was  the  message  that 
Conroe  flashed  to  the  captain. 

The  opposition  team  caught  the  exchange  of 
significant  glances  and  prepared  for  Conroe.  The 
whistle  blew,  the  signals  were  called,  and  Conroe 
received  the  ball. 

"In  this  happy  hour,  across  the  goal  line  of  the 
enemy,  oh,  heaven,  give  me  death,  give  me  death !" 

With  this  prayer  upon  his  lips,  Conroe  made 
the  plunge.  Like  wild  beasts  of  the  forests  the 
opposition  swarmed  about  him,  trying  to  pull  him 
down.  His  whole  body  seemed  to  him  one  great 
pain  and  he  felt  as  though  a  world  was  upon  him, 
but  somehow  he  did  not  shrink.  His  will  appeared 
to  have  converted  his  muscles  into  iron.  Sup- 
ported by  his  team,  he  slowly,  steadily  pushed  the 
struggling  mass  of  humanity  opposing  him,  back 
and  back  and  back,  inch  by  inch. 

The  mighty  throng  held  its  breath. 

Slowly,  doggedly,  with  grim  determination, 
Conroe,  backed  by  his  resolute  team,  continued  to 
push  his  way  until,  across  the  goal  line,  he  fell  to 
the  ground,  clutching  the  ball  as  with  hooks  of 
steel. 


86  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

A  mighty  shout  broke  out  upon  the  air  and  men 
wild  with  enthusiasm  rushed  to  the  scene  intend- 
ing to  carry  Conroe  on  their  shoulders  around 
the  grounds. 

But  when  the  struggling  players  had  disen- 
tangled themselves  it  was  found  that  Conroe  did 
not  rise. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

EINA  BEGINS  TO  PLAN. 

INA  had  noted  the  desperate  character  of 
Conroe's  playing,  and  her  woman's  intui- 
tion told  her  at  once  that  his  bearing  was 
that  of  a  soul  struggling  with  some  dark  shadow. 

Learning  where  Conroe  was  taken  for  treat- 
ment, Eina  called  on  him,  and  by  her  warm,  un- 
feigned sympathy,  completely  won  his  confidence. 
To  her  he  told  the  story  of  his  baffled  love,  how 
that  Clotille,  the  girl  of  his  choice,  was  being 
withheld  from  him  on  account  of  his  color. 

As  Conroe  was  a  noble,  handsome  fellow  Eina 
divined  at  once  that  the  trouble  was  not  to  be 
found  in  him  but  somewhere  in  things  external  to 
him.  As  she  gazed  upon  his  fine,  manly  face, 
listened  to  the  sentiments  of  his  heart  and  thought 
of  his  love  for  one  of  his  own  mould,  from  whom 
he  was  being  debarred  by  sinister  influences  in 
American  life,  she  then  and  there  resolved  to 
dedicate  her  life  to  the  sweeping  away  of  what- 
ever barriers  stood  in  the  way  of  the  happiness 
of  her  beloved  Clotille  and  the  admirable  Conroe. 

Here  then  was  to  be  a  battle  royal  within  the 
colored  race,  Eina  of  the  light  complexion  bat- 
tling against  Miss  Letitia  of  the  light  complexion, 
the  two  taking  opposite  views  with  regard  to  the 
destinies  of  two  dark  persons. 


88  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Eina  had  learned  to  esteem  very  highly  Uncle 
Jack's  philosophizings,  and  now  that  she  was 
about  to  plan  for  the  purging  of  the  atmosphere 
that  there  might  be  a  larger  measure  of  hope  for 
a  man  of  the  dark  hue  and  less  of  sentiment 
against  him,  she  thought  that  it  would  be  well 
for  her  to  go  back  into  the  past,  that  its  mis- 
takes might  be  a  guiding  influence  in  any  new 
movement  projected. 

"Uncle  Jack,"  said  Eina,  one  day,  as  she  stood 
observing  him  as  he  washed  the  buggy,  "do  tell 
me  how  it  is  that  you  colored  people  and  the 
white  people  have  gotten  so  far  apart  here  in  the 
South.  From  what  I  can  learn  there  was  less  of 
personal  freindship  after  the  war  than  during 
and  before  it.  How  was  that?" 

"Ef  yer'll  wait  'tell  I'm  done  dis  buggy,  an' 
let  me  hab  er  extry  big  chaw  uv  terbacky,  an'll 
lets  take  seats  out  heah  in  de  shade  uv  de  big  tree, 
I'll  make  it  plain  er  'nough  fur  er  babe,"  said 
Uncle  Jack. 

After  the  buggy  was  washed,  Eina  arranged  the 
chairs  and  suffered  Uncle  Jack  to  equip  himself 
with  his  thought  stimulator.  Thus  situated,  Uncle 
Jack  launched  into  his  subject. 

"Befo*  de  war  I  uster  heah  de  white  men 
'scussin'  frein'  de  slaves,  an'  de  one  thing  dat  dey 
said  kep'  'um  back  wuz  dey  thort  dat  de  cullud  peo- 
ple coulden't  be  kep'  at  wuk  'cep'in  ez  slaves. 
Dat's  one  reasun  dat  love  nor  money  could  make 


EINA   BEGINS    TO   PLAN.  89 

mos'  uv  de  Aristocrat  white  folks  'gree  ter  turn  de 
slaves  loose. 

"Whut  is  rich  sile  wid  no  plow  ter  turn  it  up? 
Home  uv  weeds,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  pausing  to 
empty  his  mouth  of  accumulated  tobacco  juice. 

"Wai,  w'en  'manserpation  come  we  uns  had 
sevvul  notions.  Fust  we  thort  ter  'joy  our  liburtee 
by  restin'  er  while,  jes'  ter  see  how  it  feel  not  ter 
be  at  wuk  some  time.  We  wuz  by  our  liburtee  lak 
er  leetul  boy  wid  er  new  top.  We  wanted  ter 
play  wid  it  ter  see  how  it  would  do.  Den  ergin, 
we  uns  felt  dat  we  could  'joy  our  liburtee  better 
on  some  udder  plantation  dan  on  ourn.  Yer  see 
it  wuz  mighty  hard  fur  er  feller  ter  stan'  whar  he 
uster  be  beat  an'  bellow  lak  er  steer  an'  feel  he 
wuz  er  man.  Dat  ole  creepy  feelin'  would  some- 
how come  back,  an'  so  lots  uv  de  cullud  people  lef ' 
fur  udder  plantations  jes'  ter  git  plum  erway  frum 
ole  times.  Den  ergin  er  new  man  mout  not  feel  so 
spry  'round  yer  as  yer  own  massa. 

"Wai,  de  white  folks  thort  we  wuz  quittin'  fur 
good,  an'  didun't  understan'  why  we  wuz  runnin' 
frum  farm  ter  farm.  De  cullud  folks  wuz  huntin' 
fur  de  place  whar  dey  could  'joy  dare  liburtee  an' 
manhood  feelin's  mos'. 

"Now  dare  wuz  er  nudder  fac'.  Dare  wuz  mo' 
in  slav'ry'  cepin'  wuk.  Dare  wuz  'buse  in  it  an'  no 
talkin'  back.  Dat  wuz  er  big  part  uv  it. 

"De  white  people  'spected  ter  keep  up  dat, 
but  de  cullud  man  wanted  ter  talk  back.  So  w'en 
de  legislachurs  met  dey  brung  er  'bout  laws  dat 


90  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

jam  by  put  us  in  slav'ry  ergin.  Fac'  it  wuz  so 
close  on  ter  it  dat  dare  wuzunt  no  fun  in  it. 

"Wai  atter  so  long  er  time,  de  Norf,  seem' 
whut  we  wuz  headin'  towards,  stepped  in  an'  says 
we  ain't  goin*  ter  hab  no  more  slav'ry  ter  be 
fightin'  ovah.  Dat  wuz  how  we  got  de  ballut,  ter 
put  men  in  de  legislachur  dat  would  keep  us  free 
an'  'peal  back  dem  jam  by  slav'ry  laws. 

"Wai,  de  legislachurs  kep'  us  free  all  right 
an*  we  at  las'  felt  lak  men  dem  days.  But  de 
white  people  sez  dat  dem  legislachurs  treated 
dem  almos'  ez  bad  ez  I  heahs  de  people  uv  New 
Yawk  an'  Phillerdelphia  an'  Fran  Sancisco  hez 
been  treated  by  some  white  folks. 

"Wai,  de  bes'  white  people  didun't  think  we  wuz 
fittin'  ter  vote  an'  woulden't  hab  nothin'  ter  do  wid 
us.  Wai,  we  jes'  had  ter  take  de  skallerwags. 
Now,  ef  dare  is  enny  one  thing  er  cullud  man  do 
know  it  is  de  diffunce  'tween  a  quality  white  man 
an'  trash.  But  ef  yer  jes'  kain't  git  logs  ter  burn, 
yer  jes'  mus'  use  chips.  Comin'  ter  de  pint  uv 
de  white  an'  cullud  people's  fallin'  out  it  wuz 
mos'  'bout  de  plans  de  white  folks  took  ter  deal 
wid  'urn. 

Just  here  a  smile  appeared  on  Uncle  Jack's  face, 
that  smile  that  was  always  the  forerunner  of  some 
humorous  experience. 

"What  is  it  now,  Uncle  Jack?"  asked  Eina, 
coaxingly. 

"I  'spec'  I  kin  make  my  meanin'  er  leetul  plainer 
ter  yer  by  jes'  citin'  sumpin'  dat  happunned  ter 
me  once  'pon  er  time." 


EINA   BEGINS    TO   PLAN.  91 

"All  right,  Uncle  Jack;  out  with  it,"  said  Eina. 

"I  'membah  w'en  I  wuz  er  young  buck  an'  fust 
tuk  it  in  my  head  ter  try  ter  go  wid  de  gals.  De 
gal  dat  I  coated  fust,  dat  is,  dat  I  thort  I  wuz 
coatin',  wuz  er  big,  fat,  lakley-lookin'  gal,  an*  wuz 
ez  good  ter  look  at  ez  er  nice  fat  pig  at  hog- 
killin'  time.  An*  I  mus'  'fess  dat  I  shuah  did  lak 
her.  She  could  talk  lak  er  poll  paritt,  walk  ez 
proud  ez  er  peacock,  sing  lak  er  markin'  bird  an' 
dance  lak  er  buzz  saw.  Wen  evah  I  would  see 
her  doin'  enny  uv  dem  things  it  would  make  me 
feel  good  all  ovah,  an'  I  would  jes'  say  ter  myself, 
'Ef  I  could  jes'  git  dat  gal,  I'd  feel  prouder  dan  ef 
I  could  eat  wheat  bread  an'  chicken  fur  er  whole 
month.' 

"De  trouble  'twixt  me  an'  dat  gal  come  erbout 
in  dis  way.  Ez  I  jes'  said,  she  wuz  er  talker.  Wai, 
I  wuzunt  in  dem  days.  Wen  I  wuzunt  whar  she 
wuz  I  could  jes'  talk  ter  her  lak  er  churn  dasher 
talkin'  ter  two  gallons  uv  clabber,  an'  goin'  splish 
er  splash.  But  jes'  ez  shuah  ez  I  got  whar  de  gal 
wuz,  er  lump  uv  some  kin'  allus  riz  right  up  in 
my  throat  an'  ter  save  my  life  I  couldent  talk 
ter  her. 

"I  thort  I  wuz  cunjured  an'  went  ter  er  cunjure 
doctah.  He  told  me  dat  dare  wuz  er  worm  in  my 
throat  dat  some  buck  had  done  had  ter  git  in  dare 
ter  eat  up  my  wurruds,  so  ez  I  coulden't  beat  his 
time  wid  de  gal.  I  done  whut  he  tole  me  ter  do, 
but  de  wurruds  wuz  et  up  jes'  ez  fas'  ez  evah. 
But  I  wuz  jes'  ez  steady  goin'  ter  see  her  ez  evah. 


92  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

De  buck  dat  wuz  tryin'  ter  beat  my  time,  he  would 
come  ter  see  her,  an'  me  an'  him  would  set  an' 
set,  one  tryin'  ter  out  set  de  udder.  Dis  buck 
had  er  whole  lot  uv  gab  an*  I  seed  he  wuz  goin' 
ter  beat  my  time,  so  I  jes'  up  an'  tole  him  dat 
I  would  lick  de  stuffenin'  outen  him  ef  he  showed 
up  at  dat  gal's  house  ergin. 

"De  gal  by  dis  time  had  erbout  got  plum  tired 
uv  me,  'cau*e  I  wuz  kinder  lak  dey  say  Moses  wuz, 
slow  uv  sr  3ch,  an'  she  'sided  ter  help  de  udder 
feller. 

"De  ne~  visitin'  time,  she  wuz  out  en  er  leetul 
grove  not, \  ar  f rum  de  house  whar  she  wuz  stay- 
in',  an'  dis  buck  wuz  dare  wid  her.  Wen  I  went 
whar  she  wuz  she  cum  up  ter  me  an'  kinder  fell 
on  my  neck  an'  said,  'Oh,  Mistah  Jack,  doan'  fit 
right  heah  ter  night.'  'He  said  he  wuz  goin' 
ter  whup  me  ter  night,  an*  he's  got  ter  do  it,' 
said  de  buck  dat  was  my  orrival  fur  de  gal. 

"Wen  he  said  dat,  I  made  fur  him,  wid  he  gal 
pullin'  at  my  coat  tail.  Yer  mout  not  b'leve  it, 
but  dat  gal  slipped  er  big  dead  snake  in  my  coat 
pockit.  Evah  botty  'roun'  dem  plantations 
knowed  dat  I  wuz  skeert  uv  snakes,  dead  er 
erlive,  an'  she  had  kilt  dat  snake  an'  kep'  him  jes' 
fur  me  atter  she  seed  de  fight  wuz  comin'.  De 
udder  feller  squared  hisself  an'  we  wuz  ready 
fur  de  fight  w'en  de  gal  said,  'Laws  a  mussy, 
Mistah  Jack,  yer  been  layin'  down  somewhar 
an'  er  big  snake  done  crawled  up  in  yer  pockit.' 

"Quick  ez  er  flash  I  retched  er  han'  ter  my 


EINA   BEGINS   TO   PLAN.  93 

pockit,  ter  see  ef  she  wuz  er  jokin'.  Wai,  sah, 
w'en  my  ban*  teched  dat  slick  sarpin'  down  in  dat 
pockit  de  cole  chills  jes'  chased  one  er  nudder 
up  an*  down  my  back. 

"Talk  erbout  dancin,'  yer  Uncle  Jack  danced  in 
er  clean  place  'long  erbout  den.  I  hollered,  'Heah, 
feller,  help  me  git  rid  uv  dis*  snake.  Come  quick/ 
'Whut  erbout  de  gal?'  he  said  ter  me.  Tlague 
tek  de  gal,  I'm  bothered  'bout  snakes  jes'  now/ 
said  I,  dancin'  'roun'  and  'roun',  holdin'  my  coat 
tail  ez  fur  frum  me  ez  I  could.  'Ef  yer  will 
promis'  me  dat  yer  won't  bother  my  gal  no  more, 
I'll  help  yer  wid  de  snake,'  he  said. 

"Wai,  I  felt  dat  ef  sumpin'  didunt  happen  de 
snake  wuz  goin'  ter  wake  up  an'  bite  me  ter  death, 
an'  den  de  feller  would  hab  de  gal.  I  thort  quick 
an'  said,  'It's  bettah  ter  be  live  widout  de  gal  dan 
be  dead  widout  her;  yer  kin  hab  all  de  gals  in  de 
worl'  ef  yer  will  help  me  ter  save  my  life  frum  dis 
snake/  Den  de  feller  an'  de  gal  come  an'  helped 
me  ter  git  off  my  coat  an'  de  snake  wuz  shook  out. 
W'en  I  foun'  out  dat  de  snake  wuz  dead  I  felt  so 
'shamed  dat  I  slunk  erway  frum  dat  place  an' 
didun't  go  back  dare  no  more,  nevah  no  more. 

"Now  de  gal  had  er  perfic'  right  ter  git  rid  er 
me,  but  dare  wuz  er  more  systermatic  way  uv 
goin'  'bout  it.  Ef  she  had  jes'  said,  'Mistah  Jack, 
yer  ain't  got  quite  ernough  gab  fur  me,  an'  I  laks 
some  one  else  better 'n  I  doos  yer,'  dat  woul'  hab 
settled  de  whole  mattah. 

"Now,  I  says  dis,  an'  I  sticks  ter  it :    De  cullud 


94  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

folks  knows  er  quality  white  man  w'en  dey  sees 
one,  an*  dey  hez  allus  been  willin'  ter  foller  de 
quality  folks  ef  dey  would  only  let  'um.  W'en 
we  foun'  dat  our  legislachurs  wuz  doin'  bad, 
ef  de  good  white  folks  had  come  at  us  right,  lak 
dey  doos  ter  one  er  nudder  w'en  dey  fin'  dat  dey 
hez  put  er  bad  gang  in,  we  would  hab  help  'um 
ter  turn  de  raskils  out.  An'  ter  dis  day,  dey  kin 
git  us  ter  wuk  right  wid  'um  ef  dey  will  only  come 
atter  us  kinder  right.  'Cordin'  ter  my  notion, 
den,  de  biggis'  thing  dat  put  an'  keeps  de  cullud 
an'  white  folks  er  part  is  de  unsystermatic  way  de 
white  folks  hez  uv  comin'  at  de  cullud  folks  ter 
straighten  out  things." 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THAT  IS  THE  QUESTION. 

[HE  next  afternoon  as  Eina  was  sitting  upon 
her  porch  reading  a  Belrose  paper,  Uncle 
Jack  was  in  her  front  yard  looking  from 
flower  bed  to  flower  bed  to  see  just  which  of  the 
flowers  demanded  his  attention.  His  kindly  face 
was  aglow  with  the  love  he  felt  as  he  moved 
about  among  these  tender,  beautiful  children  of 
the  soil. 

Eina,  now  keenly  alive  to  anything  bearing  on 
racial  friction,  had  just  come  across  a  tribute 
to  the  famous  Ku  Klux  Klan,  and  the  laudatory 
character  of  the  reference  was  so  at  variance 
with  all  that  she  had  heard  of  the  organization 
that  she  read  the  tribute  through  several  times 
and  then  summoned  Uncle  Jack  to  read  the  article 
to  him. 

As  she  proceeded  to  read,  she  looked  up  and 
noted  such  a  look  of  woe  upon  Uncle  Jack's  face 
that  she  became  alarmed. 

"Why,  dear  Uncle  Jack,  what  on  earth  is  the 
matter?" 

Uncle  Jack  was  shivering  from  head  to  foot. 

"Fur  de  Lawd's  sake  doan',  doan'  talk  erbout 
dem  Ku  Kluxes,"  he  groaned. 

"Why,  Uncle  Jack?" 


96  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Wai,  I'll  tell  yer,  Miss  Eina,"  said  Uncle  Jack, 
now  taking  his  chew  of  tobacco  out  of  his  mouth 
and  tossing  it  into  the  cuspidor,  saying,  as  he  did 
so,  "Wen  I  comes  ter  de  Ku  Kluxes  I  doan'  need 
nuthin'  to  stimmerlate  me." 

"Fust  uv  all  doan'  yer  b'lieve  dat  de  white  peo- 
ple had  ter  oggunize  ter  purteck  dare  wimmin 
folks.  Nevah  been  done  since  de  worl'  com- 
minced,  dat  is,  down  'mongst  our  white  folks. 
Evah  since  I  knowed  er  heered  'bout  white  folks 
er  white  'oman's  cry  hez  been  er  army  an'  genuls 
an'  cunnels  an*  evah  thing.  White  folks  doan'  no 
more  have  ter  oggunize  ter  purteck  dare  wimmins 
dan  dey  do  ter  have  ter  go  ter  bed  at  night.  White 
men  jes'  nachally  doos  dat.  I  doan'  know  who 
belonged  ter  de  Ku  Kluxes  w'en  it  fust  started  an' 
I  doan'  know  whut  it  wuz  started  fur,  but  I  got 
jes'  two  things  ergin  'um,"  said  Uncle  Jack. 

"Now  that's  what  I  want  to  hear  from  some 
sober  old-time  colored  man  like  you,"  said  Eina. 

"Dare  ain't  ben  no  day  in  dis  Souf  Ian'  w'en 
de  bes'  white  folks  coulden't  git  de  cullud  folks 
ter  wuk  wid  dem  ef  dey  wanted  ter.  De  truf  uv 
de  whole  mattah  is  dat  dey  jes'  ain't  wanted  ter 
wuk  wid  us  in  polertics.  Dat  is  de  long  an'  de 
short  uv  it. 

"Ef  de  white  folks  had  come  ter  de  cullud 
people  in  de  right  sperrit  dey  could  hab  put  de 
wrong-doers  out  uv  businiss.  'Stead  uv  jinin' 
han'  wid  de  cullud  people  an'  throwin*  de  wrong- 
doers out,  de  Ku  Kluxes  come  er  long  ter  put  de 


THAT  IS   THE   QUESTION.  97 

cullud  folks  out  uv  polertics  all  together.  Evah 
botty  knows  dat  dare  wuz  wrong  goin'  on,  but  it 
wuz  er  qusshum  ez  ter  whut  wuz  de  bes'  way  ter 
git  de  change.  Now  dare  ain't  no  use  in  nobotty 
sayin'  de  white  folks  doan'  know  how  ter  lead  de 
cullud  folks  by  peacerble  means.  I  tells  yer  ergin, 
dey  wuz  jes'  erbove  dealin'  wid  dare  formah  slaves 
ez  men,  an'  dat  is  whut  brung  de  Ku  Kluxes 
erbout." 

"I  think  I  understand  your  viewpoint,  Uncle 
Jack,"  said  Eina. 

"But  here  wuz  de  wustest  harm  dat  wuz  done 
by  de  Ku  Kluxes.  In  evah  man  under  de  sun  dare 
is  some  bad.  In  evah  race  dare  is  some  men  in 
whom  more  bad  gits  piled  up  dan  good.  Evah 
race  hez  got  some  mighty  bad  folks.  De  Ku 
Kluxes  by  de  secrit  an'  night  ways  dat  it  had, 
furnished  er  cloak  fur  all  de  bad  men  in  de  Souf . 

"Dey  says  now  dat  de  real  Ku  Kluxes  wuz  er 
jquiut,  lady-lak  oggunerzation  fur  helpin'  poor 
'fenseless  folks.  Wai,  de  bad  white  folks  mus' 
er  bin  kep  out  er  de  lady-lak  Ku  Kluxes,  an'  got 
up  er  diffunt  kind  whut  run  erlong  in  de  shadow 
uv  de  udders.  De  lady-lak  Ku  Kluxes  mus'  er 
wuked  mostly  'mong  de  white  folks,  fur  I  ain't 
never  f oun'  er  cullud  man  yit  dat  run  up  ergin  'um 
dat  come  erway  thinkin'  dat  he  had  been  layin'  in 
some  nice  'oman's  arms.  Wen  de  lady-lak  Ku 
Kluxes  got  up  dis  midnight  secrit  way  uv  doin' 
things  evah  bad  man  in  de  Souf  clapped  his  han's 
fur  joy.  Evah  debbul  kotched  right  hold  uv  de 

7 


98  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

midnight  plan,  an*  'fore  God  it  wuz  de  baddis' 
times  dat  evah  been  in  de  Ian'. 

"All  de  murder  sperrited  men,  de  cutthroats  an' 
de  scounuls  wuz  happy,  fur  dey  could  now  git 
in  dare  wuk.  Ah  dem  wuz  awful  times!" 

Uncle  Jack  now  bowed  his  head  and  lifted  his 
large  har.ds  to  his  face. 

"Did  you  have  any  personal  experiences  with 
the  Ku  Kluxes?"  asked  Eina. 

Uncle  Jack's  answer  was  a  groan. 

"Tell  me  about  them,"  said  Eina. 

"Wai,"  began  Uncle  Jack,  "de  white  folks  allus 
laked  me  an*  I  could  git  er  fust  rate  farm  any 
time.  Er  white  farmer  who  wuzun't  so  good  at 
de  businiss  wuz  turnt  erway  frum  er  farm  an'  it 
wuz  rented  ter  me.  He  didunt  lak  dat,  an'  ez  de 
Ku  Kluxes  wuz  ridin'  in  dem  days,  he  got  up  er 
gang  an'  come  ter  my  house.  Dey  shot  in  my 
house  an'  kilt  my  two-year-ole  boy,  an'  my  one- 
year-old  leetul  gal,  an'  shot  my  ole  'oman  through 
de  head." 

Uncle  Jack  here  arose  and  slowly  tottered  from 
the  room.  Out  in  the  back  yard  under  the  tree 
the  old  man  wept  as  a  babe.  When  more  self- 
possessed  he  returned  to  the  room  and  resumed 
his  narrative. 

"Dey  shot  me,  too,  an'  took  me  out  ter  beat  me 
an'  hang  me,"  continued  Uncle  Jack.  "Atter 
dey  had  beat  me,  dey  wuz  purseedin'  ter  hang  me 
w'en  er  gang  led  by  de  white  man  I  wuz  rentin' 
frum  come  up  an'  kilt  evah  las'  one  uv  um,  an' 


THAT   IS   THE   QUESTION.  99 

got  me.  Dare  dead  bottles  showed  dat  dey  wuz  all 
de  wuss  men  erroun'.  Feelin'  dat  dare  wuk  would 
be  took  fur  Ku  Klux  wuk,  dey  had  come  ter  en* 
my  days. 

"My  pore,  pore  ole  'oman  an*  leetul  brats  dat 
mout  be  heah  ter  comfirt  my  ole  age! 

"Ef  de  Ku  Kluxes  did  enny  good,  de  plans  dey 
brung  erbout,  midnight  an*  secrit  doin's,  made  it 
mighty  bad  fur  enny  cullud  man  who  had  er  white 
enemy  enny  whar  in  de  Ian'. 

"It  wuz  er  pity  de  white  folks  didun't  lead  de 
cullud  folks  erway  'stead  er  'sortin'  to  de  mid- 
night plan  dat  wuz  so  easy  and  glatly  tuck  up  by 
bad  people. 

"Ugh,  ugh,  ugh!  Let's  not  talk  erbout  Ku 
Kluxes.  It's  goin'  ter  be  so  much  bettah  when 
de  white  folks  makes  it  up  in  dare  min's  dat  dey 
will  turn  in  an'  try  ter  wuk  wid  de  cullud  folks. 
I  sticks  ter  it.  Good  white  people  kin  lead  de 
cullud  folks  ef  dey  will  jes'  'gree  ter  do  so." 

Uncle  Jack  paused  awhile,  as  if  in  medita- 
tion. "Miss  Eina,  do  yer  think  de  bes'  white  peo- 
ple will  evah  'gree  ter  wuk  'long  wid  de  cullud 
people  in  de  same  perlittercul  yoke?  Dat  is  de 
qusshun,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  as  much  to  himself 
as  to  Eina. 

"That  is  the  question,"  said  Eina,  lost  in  deep 
thought. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

EINA  AND  BAUG. 

[IN A  thought  long  over  what  Uncle  Jack 
had  let  fall  in  his  talks,  and  now  decided 
that  she  would  play  the  part  of  mediator 
and  bring  the  better  elements  of  white  and  col- 
ored people  of  Belrose  together,  out  of  which  har- 
monious relationship  there  would  spring  more 
benign  influences  to  smile  upon  the  pathway  of  her 
friends,  Conroe  and  Clotille. 

In  keeping  with  this  purpose  Eina  wrote  the 
following  note: 

"My  Dear  Mr.  Peppers:  Will  you  please  call 
at  my  home  at  eight  o'clock  this  evening?  Sharpen 
your  wits,  for  I  have  a  serious  puzzle  for  you  to 
unfold.  Cordially, 

"EINA  RAPONA." 

"Will  I?  Will  a  pig  eat  corn?  Will  a  bee  draw 
nectar  from  a  flower?  Will  I  call  to  see  Miss 
Rapona  ?  I  should  say  that  I  will,"  said  the  happy 
Baug  upon  receiving  the  beautifully  written  note 
that  Eina  had  sent  him.  Exactly  at  one  minute  to 
eight  he  was  ringing  the  door  bell  of  Eina's  home. 
Eina  was  attired  very  simply  on  this  occasion, 
and  by  virtue  of  this  very  fact  was  all  the  more 
beautiful,  thought  Baug. 

After  a  brief  conversation  on  current  topics 
Eina  plunged  into  the  matter  for  which  she  had 
summoned  Baug. 


EINA   AND   BAUG.  101 

"I  have  asked  you  here  to  help  me  solve  the 
race  question  for  Belrose,"  said  Eina,  her  beau- 
tiful eyes  resting  upon  Baug  wiith  a  trustful 
glance. 

If  Eina  had  asked  Baug  to  blow  up  the  universe, 
accompanying  the  request  with  that  look  of  confi- 
dence, he  would  not  have  had  the  heart  to  have 
said  that  what  she  asked  was  impossible.  And  yet 
he  felt  that  he  must  get  the  stupendous  nature  of 
the  task  before  her. 

"Some  very  able  people  say  that  the  question 
is  absolutely  unsolvable,"  said  Baug,  taking  pains 
by  his  tone  of  voice  to  have  himself  excluded  from 
the  group  of  unbelievers. 

"I  am  of  the  opinion  that  it  is  decidedly  easy 
of  solution,  at  least  so  far  as  Belrose  is  concerned/1 
said  Eina. 

"Let  me  hear  you  on  that  point,  Miss  Rapona," 
said  Baug,  his  interest  greatly  heightened. 

"Years  of  development  since  emancipation  have 
produced  a  group  of  cleanly,  cultured,  aspiring 
people  in  the  colored  race.  The  first  step  in  the 
solution  is  for  this  group  to  take  charge  of  and 
guide  the  racial  thought  and  life.  It  can  be  done, 
and  the  confidence  of  the  people  in  your  character 
and  ability  point  to  you  as  the  one  man  to  weld 
this  controlling  group  and  to  link  it  on  to  the 
masses  of  the  colored  people,"  said  Eina. 

"The  dearest  compliment  that  was  ever  paid  me 
in  my  life,  when  I  reflect  on  the  source,"  said 
Baug,  feelingly. 


102  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Eina  bowed  her  thanks  and  continued : 
"There  is  a  thoroughly  enlightened  and  humane 
class  among  our  white  neighbors  that  can  be 
reached,  I  think.  With  the  colored  people  properly 
guided  and  working  in  unison  with  the  strength 
of  the  white  people  of  the  South,  you  will  soon 
have  no  problem." 

"I  really  think  that  you  have  the  whole  matter 
in  a  nutshell,  Miss  Rapona.  I  am  at  your  service. 
In  fact,  all  of  my  thoughts  have  been  turned  in 
this  direction.  I  can  hardly  say  for  what  I  have 
been  waiting.  An  inspiring  force,  I  suppose,"  said 
Baug. 

"Now,  Mr.  Peppers,  in  my  opinion  your  yoke 
mate  among  the  whites  should  be  Lawyer  Molair, 
Seth  Molair." 

"Miss  Rapona,"  said  Baug,  in  a  subdued  voice, 
"have  you  noticed  how  very  often  our  minds  have 
run  in  the  same  channel?" 

Pausing  a  moment,  and  looking  directly  into 
Eina's  face,  that  he  might  at  least  at  this  juncture 
hint  at  the  deeper  emotions  of  his  heart,  he  asked 
slowly,  "What  do  you  think  is  the  significance  of 
this  mental  affinity?" 

Eina  blushed  slightly.  "Let  us  discuss  the 
psychology  of  our  agreeing  after  we  have  won 
our  battle,"  said  Eina,  in  a  tone  that  revealed 
the  fact  that  the  hour  when  personal  questions 
between  herself  and  Baug  were  to  be  taken  up 
would  not  be  an  unwelcome  one. 


BIN  A   AND   BAUG.  103 

It  was  now  agreed  that  Baug  was  to  proceed  at 
once  to  the  organizing  of  the  colored  people  of 
Belrose  and  the  putting  of  all  that  was  highest  in 
their  life  in  the  lead.  Abortive  efforts  extending 
over  many  years  to  have  certain  amendments  to 
the  federal  constitution  enforced  by  influences 
without  the  South  had  convinced  many  of  the  more 
thoughtful  colored  people  that  it  was  high  time 
for  them  to  inaugurate  some  movement  within 
the  South  itself  that  would  serve  to  ameliorate  the 
situation.  Baug  experienced,  therefore,  but  little 
trouble  in  harnessing  the  substantial  forces  within 
the  Negro  race  in  his  movement.  The  mere  pros- 
pect of  an  honorable  way  to  close  the  long  political 
war  between  the  races,  which  had  kept  the  South 
in  the  background  of  national  affairs,  and  had 
operated  against  the  Negroes  locally,  was  hailed 
with  delight. 

The  next  problem,  and  the  problem,  as  Baug 
viewed  the  matter,  was  to  win  the  aid  of  Molair. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

A   STRANGE   LETTER. 

OW,  hello!     By  the  eternals,  this  thing 
is  worth  thinking  about!     Indeed  it  is! 
Indeed  it  is!" 

Such  were  the  sentiments  to  which  Seth  Molair 
gave  voice,  as,  barred  alone  in  his  inner  office, 
he  laid  down  an  anonymous  letter  which  he  had 
just  finished  reading.  As  was  his  wont  when  he 
was  dealing  with  a  matter  that  took  deep  hold 
upon  his  mind,  Molair  now  began  to  walk  to  and 
fro  in  his  office,  snapping  his  thumb  and  second 
finger  as  he  walked.  This,  his  stenographer  had 
found  out,  was  a  sure  sign  of  an  intense  mood 
on  his  part  and  it  was  her  rule  to  never  allow 
callers  to  see  him  as  long  as  he  gave  these 
signs  of  absorption.  She  had  learned  that  only 
the  gravest  matters  thus  worked  upon  him  and 
that  he  appreciated  her  thoughtfulness  in  seeing 
that  he  was  not  disturbed  at  such  times. 

"Who  could  have  written  this  letter?"  asked 
Molair.  Stopping  at  his  desk  as  he  walked,  he 
picked  up  the  envelope  and  looked  at  the  post 
mark.  It  was  a  Belrose  letter  and  had  been 
mailed  on  the  day  previous.  The  address  on  the 
envelope,  and  the  letter  itself  had  been  written 
on  a  typewriter. 


A  STRANGE  LETTER.  105 

"Let  me  read  this  letter  again,"  said  Molair. 
He  now  sat  down,  spread  the  letter  before  him 
and  studied  it  closely  as  he  read.  It  ran  as 
follows : 

"Mr.  Seth  Molair, 

"Belrose. 
"Dear  Sir: 

"You  do  not  know  me  and  perhaps  never  will. 
Let  me  now  stand  to  you  as  the  voice  of  destiny. 

"You  are  doing  wrong.  In  all  your  life  you 
have  done  nothing  actively  to  make  the  life  of 
the  colored  people  unbearable.  This  is  wrong  and 
I  can  soon  show  it  to  you. 

"What  we  Americans  need  is  homogeneiety  in 
our  population.  In  the  last  analysis  we  ought 
to  be  a  people  of  one  type.  There  is  no  room 
for  two  or  more  diverse  ethnic  types.  It  works 
for  inharmony." 

At  this  point  Molair,  when  he  first  read  the  let- 
ter, was  very  much  puzzled. 

The  letter  had  opened  as  though  it  came  from 
some  bitter  foe  of  the  Negro,  but  this  last  re- 
mark seemed  to  point  to  amalgamation.  With 
quickened  interest  he  had  gone  on  with  the  let- 
ter. 

"Now,  how  are  we  to  get  this  homogeneiety? 

"We  can't  get  the  Negro  out  of  America.  The 
economic  forces  of  the  nation,  particularly  of  the 
South,  and  the  well  known  love  of  the  Negro  race 
for  the  land  of  his  birth  shut  that  idea  out. 


106  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"We  can't  murder  them.  The  eternal  ages 
would  not  suffice  to  rid  us  of  the  accumulated 
strain  of  brutality  that  would  be  necessary  for 
the  wanton  slaughter  of  ten  millions  of  largely 
law-abiding  and  inoffensive  people." 

At  this  point  Molair's  wrath  had  begun  to 
mount  and  his  eye  had  sought  the  end  of  the 
letter,  desiring  to  know  the  name  of  the  author 
who,  having  discarded  emigration  and  annihila- 
tion, Molair  felt  must  be  on  the  eve  of  boldly 
suggesting  amalgamation.  But  the  next  two  sen- 
tences cured  this  thought  and  intensely  height- 
ened his  curiosity  to  know  just  what  was  to  be 
suggested.  The  letter  continued: 

"Nor  can  we  for  a  moment  tolerate  the  thought 
of  amalgamation,  which  would  throw  us  into  the 
ranks  of  the  colored  races  and  make  us  heir  to 
all  their  disadvantages,  internal  and  external. 
Homogeneiety  must  not  come  that  way." 

"This  person  must  be  a  crank  of  some  sort," 
Molair  had  thought  at  this  point. 

"I  offer  two  suggestions,"  the  letter  continued, 
"either  of  which  would  work  well,  I  think.  First, 
let  us  pass  a  law  forbidding  all  people  to  marry 
save  mulattoes  and  white  people,  allowing  mulat- 
toes  to  marry  mulattoes  only,  and  whites  to  marry 
whites  only.  We  have  on  our  hands  both  the  li- 
cense system  and  the  police  power.  We  can  re- 
fuse to  license  black  people  to  marry,  and  can 
throw  all  of  them  in  jail  who  try  to  marry  con- 
trary to  law." 


A  STRANGE  LETTER.  107 

Molair  here  smiled  and  said,  "The  fool.  Why 
the  jails  of  the  world  would  not  hold  the  pris- 
oners." 

He  read  on. 

"You  see,  our  prison  systems  in  the  South  are 
money-making  affairs  anyhow,  and  it  would  be  to 
our  interest  to  have  more  convicts.  The  men 
could  be  sent  to  the  mines  and  fields  and  the  wo- 
men could  be  made  to  serve  as  cooks  and  wash- 
erwomen. Each  home  could  have  a  little  jail 
into  which  the  cook  could  be  put,  and  the  food 
to  be  cooked  could  be  handed  in  to  her.  That 
would  solve  the  servant  problem.  As  fast  as  the 
blacks  died  out  we  could  fill  their  places  with  for- 
eigners. 

"The  second  suggestion  is  as  follows : 

"Let  us  multiply  the  burdens  of  the  colored 
people  until  the  maternal  instinct  within  the  race 
becomes  saturated  with  the  thought  that  there 
is  no  hop-e  for  the  colored  people  as  such. 

"I  learn  that  already  the  most  profitable  line 
of  advertisement  in  the  Negro  journals  is  of  face 
bleaches.  The  weaklings  in  the  race  are  deathly 
anxious  to  lose  the  black  complexion. 

"Let  us  make  the  anxious  more  anxious,  and 
widen  the  circle  of  anxious  ones  until  it  embraces 
the  millions  yet  untouched. 

"We  can  heat  the  race  so  hot  with  the  fires 
of  race  prejudice  that,  without  being  conscious 
of  it,  it  will  turn  against  its  own  color.  The 
black  man  will  avoid  marrying  the  black  woman, 


108  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

and  the  black  woman  the  black  man.  The  de- 
cree of  nature  will  go  forth  that  through  the 
process  of  natural  selection  the  race  must  be 
whitened. 

"The  white  man  and  the  Negro  woman  of  the 
South  are  free.  The  Negro  men  do  not  molest 
the  white  men,  for  the  Negroes  are  deterred  by 
the  mob  and  by  State  authorities  with  machine 
guns.  The  results  of  these  unions  thrown  into  the 
Negro  race  can  help  to  whiten  that  race.  By  this 
route  we  can  produce  a  white  race  out  of  the 
Negro  race. 

"But  you  will  say  (I  fancy  I  hear  you  saying  it) 
eventually  we  could  not  tell  colored  from  white, 
and  that  the  colored  could  then  glide  into  the 
white  race  imperceptibly. 

"Brand  them!  Get  a  little  marker  and  stamp 
on  the  arm  of  every  infant,  This  is  a  colored  per- 
son/ Have  the  license  clerks  to  force  all  men 
and  women  desiring  to  wed  to  appear  before  them 
in  person  and  show  their  arms. 

"You  see  in  this  way  we  will  get  the  offensive 
black  color  out  of  our  way  and  yet  not  have  any 
of  that  blood  in  our  race. 

"We  could  require  candidates  for  office  to  can- 
vass with  their  sleeves  rolled  up,  so  as  to  disclose 
a  brand  or  the  absence  of  it,  that  we  might  know 
whether  they  were  white  or  colored. 

"Now,  Mr.  Molair,  give  up  your  attitude  of 
kindliness.  Let  us,  I  say,  continue  to  drive  the 
black  man  and  the  black  woman,  as  possible 


A  STRANGE  LETTER.  109 

mates,  farther  and  farther  apart.  Create  such 
conditions  as  the  whole  Negro  race  will  rue  the 
day  that  it  was  made  black.  Sear  this  thought 
into  their  souls;  write  it  in  the  marrow  of  their 
bones.  Do  this,  and  through  the  white  man,  the 
weak  Negro  woman  and  the  tendency  of  the  race 
to  so  marry  as  to  lighten  its  hue,  we  will  eventual- 
ly be  rid  of  the  hated  color,  black. 

"For  the  sake  of  a  homogeneous  country  don't 
make  life  easier  for  the  colored  race  and  thus 
perpetuate  the  blacks  as  blacks. 

"Make  it  harder.  Give  the  colored  man  the 
same  rights  as  you  do  a  white  man,  and  what 
incentive  has  he  to  desire  to  be  white?" 

Such  was  the  letter  that  had  stirred  such  a  deep 
interest  in  Molair.  He  hardly  knew  how  to  take 
the  letter.  Its  professed  tone  was  one  of  hostility 
to  the  Negro  race,  but  he  did  not  believe  that  a 
person  with  the  sense  to  write  the  letter  could 
really  favor  the  policy  of  cruelty  suggested.  The 
reasoning  in  the  letter  at  some  points  seemed 
profound;  others  were  absolutely  absurd.  The 
thing  that  interested  Molair  most  was  the  thought 
that  the  prejudice  of  the  white  race  was  operat- 
ing in  the  direction  at  least  of  trying  to  create  a 
stampede  of  the  colored  people  away  from  their 
color. 

"Well,  it  is  a  little  unreasonable  to  set  a  man's 
house  on  fire  and  then  tell  him  to  stay  there,"  said 
Molair  to  himself. 


110  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Well,  sir,  this  prejudice  is  actually  operating 
to  draw  into  the  white  race  more  Negro  blood 
than  would  dream  of  getting  there  without  its 
aid.  I  see  that  clearly  now." 

He  continued  his  walking  and  reflecting. 

"It  is  said,"  he  mused,  "that  a  disease  which  a 
man  fears  and  broods  over  is  the  more  likely  to 
overtake  him.  Are  we  not,  by  our  prejudices,  the 
greatest  breeders  of  discontent  in  colordom?  In 
keeping  with  nature's  well-known  tendency  to 
equip  its  children  to  cope  with  their  environments, 
where  color  is  a  handicap,  will  its  tendency  not  be 
to  disappear?"  The  letter  which  had  thus  stirred 
the  mind  of  Seth  Molair  had  been  penned  by  the 
moody  Conroe  who  had  been  told  of  Eina's  pur- 
pose to  use  him  and  who  now  sought  in  this  way 
to  open  to  his  view  the  possibilities  of  a  policy  of 
discouragement. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SHE   INSISTS. 

HEN  Baug  called  at  Seth  Molair's  of- 
fice he  found  that  the  latter  was  at  home 
sick  with  the  smallpox!  And  as  the 
manner  in  which  the  dreaded  disease  was  con- 
tracted might  be  expected  to  have  some  bearing 
on  his  decision  in  the  matter  of  such  vital  con- 
cern to  Clotille  and  Conroe,  it  is  perhaps  well 
to  state  how  the  malady  was  acquired. 

One  morning  as  Molair  sat  in  his  office  he 
received  a  letter  from  the  son  of  a  colored  man 
whom  his  father  had  numbered  among  his  slaves. 
This  young  fellow  was  in  jail  charged  with  hav- 
ing committed  a  murder,  but  his  solemn  protesta- 
tions of  innocence  somehow  impressed  Molair. 

The  Molairs  had  never  ceased  under  freedom 
to  exercise  a  paternal  care  over  all  those  who  had 
belonged  to  the  family  in  the  days  of  slavery,  ex- 
tending this  interest  to  their  descendants.  Thus 
though  busy,  Molair  had  felt  constrained  to  go  to 
the  aid  of  the  accused  man.  To  begin  with,  there 
was  a  presumption  in  Molair's  mind  in  the  man's 
favor,  for  just  as  the  Negroes  had  great  faith  in 
their  white  folks,  the  whites,  as  a  rule,  had  great 
faith  in  their  Negroes. 

Arriving  in  the  town  where  the  man  was  in- 
carcerated, Molair  repaired  to  the  jail  for  a  con- 


112  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

ference.  The  jail  was  used  very  little  for  white 
prisoners,  the  most  of  them  being  able  to  make 
bond,  and  the  jailer,  having  as  a  rule  nothing  but 
Negro  prisoners  to  deal  with,  paid  practically  no 
attention  to  sanitary  conditions  in  the  prison. 

As  a  result,  the  place  reeked  with  filth.  Small- 
pox had  developed  there,  had  been  kept  a  secret 
by  such  prisoners  as  knew  it,  and  it  was  into 
this  atmosphere,  loaded  with  poisonous  germs, 
that  the  kindhearted  Molair  walked. 

Molair  assured  himself  as  to  the  innocence  of 
the  accused  man,  laid  the  foundations  for  a  suc- 
cessful case,  turned  the  matter  over  to  a  local  at- 
torney, whom  he  paid  well,  and  returned  to  Bel- 
rose,  but  not  before  the  taint  of  smallpox  had  sunk 
into  his  system. 

Deep  was  Molair's  mortification  and  chagrin 
at  having  the  smallpox,  in  view  of  its  classifica- 
tion as  a  filth  disease,  and  the  dark  thought  now 
and  then  obtruded  itself  upon  him  that  such  was 
his  reward  for  troubling  himself  with  the  woes 
of  a  colored  man. 

When  Eina  heard  of  Molair's  illness,  Uncle 
Jack  was  deputized  to  go  and  find  out  what  he 
could  about  it.  He  returned,  bringing  the  news 
that  it  was  smallpox  with  which  Molair  was  af- 
flicted, and  that  he  contracted  the  disease  trying 
to  serve  a  colored  man. 

Uncle  Jack  did  not,  of  course,  understand  Eina's 
plans,  but  he  judged  from  the  look  of  woe  upon  her 
beautiful  face  that  in  some  way  it  was  essen- 


SHE  INSISTS.  113 

tial  to  their  success  that  Molair  get  well,  so  he 
decided  to  take  a  hand  in  the  matter  himself. 

When  his  evening's  work  was  done,  Uncle  Jack, 
with  Eina's  permission,  drove  into  Belrose  and 
halted  his  horse  at  the  door  of  one  of  the  nicest 
of  the  houses  situated  in  a  section  of  the  city 
largely  owned  by  the  colored  people.  Ringing  the 
door  bell,  he  brought  to  the  door  an  aged  colored 
woman,  a  Mrs.  Lucy  Martin,  who  greeted  him 
cordially. 

"Why,  it  is  you,  Jack.  I  am  so  glad  to  see 
you." 

"I  is  glad  ter  see  yer,  Lucy;  glad  ter  see  yer," 
responded  Uncle  Jack. 

The  two  sat  down  and  Uncle  Jack  began  look- 
ing around  the  room  at  the  furnishings. 

"Yer  got  er  tolerable  nice  house,  Lucy,  tolera- 
ble nice.  An'  yer  got  it  fixed  up  putty  nice,  too," 
said  Uncle  Jack. 

"Yes,  thanks  to  my  boy,  Seth  Molair,  I  got  a 
good  start,  and  have  my  little  home  and  furnish- 
ings all  paid  for.  Seth  is  a  good,  dear  boy," 
said  Mrs.  Martin. 

The  old  woman's  voice  trembled  and  Uncle  Jack 
took  another  and  keener  look  at  her. 

"Air  yer  sick,  Lucy?"  asked  Uncle  Jack. 

"Oh,  I  haven't  been  feeling  so  well  here  late- 
ly. But  nothing  serious.  Old  age,  I  reckon," 
replied  Mrs.  Martin.  Somehow  her  appearance 
did  not  exactly  suit  Uncle  Jack,  so  he  studied  her 
for  awhile,  then  arose  to  go. 


114  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Jack,"  said  the  woman,  "don't  you  know  bet- 
ter than  to  try  to  leave  here  without  telling  me 
what  you  came  to  tell  me?  You  can't  fool  me, 
Jack.  Now  out  with  it.  You  came  to  tell  me 
something,  you  bad  boy,  you." 

"Now,  Lucy,  dat's  all  right.  Don't  yer  bother. 
Dat's  all  right." 

"No,  it  isn't  all  right,  and  you  have  got  to  tell 
me  what  is  wrong.  I  know  you,  Jack.  It  is  some- 
thing serious.  I  knew  it  as  soon  as  you  came,  to 
that  door." 

"Wai,  Lucy,  evah  thing  dat  is  lawful  ain't  allus 
'spedient,  yer  see.  So  I  mus'  tell  yer  good  night." 

"Jack,"  said  Mrs.  Martin,  "you  know  me.  I  am 
an  old  woman,  and  you  know  I  have  a  number  of 
white  and  colored  children  and  grandchildren 
in  this  place.  Some  one  of  my  children  must  be 
sick  to-night  for  you  to  be  here.  Now,  have  pity 
on  a  poor  old  woman.  Don't  make  me  roam  this 
town  all  night.  Tell  me  so  I  can  go  straight 
to  him  or  her." 

"Dat  is  jes'  why  I  doan'  want  ter  tell  yer.  I  sees 
dat  yer  constertution  ain't  de  bes'  an'  yer  might 
not  be  ekal  ter  de  tas'." 

Mrs.  Martin  did  not  hear  the  last  part  of  this  re- 
mark for  she  was  busy  getting  up  her  nursing 
aprons  and  her  favorite  little  remedies.  At  length 
she  had  all  that  she  was  looking  for,  and  forget- 
ting in  her  anxiety  to  tell  her  home  people  good- 
bye, went  at  once  with  Uncle  Jack  to  the  buggy. 

When  seated  by  Uncle  Jack's  side  Mrs.  Martin 


SHE  INSISTS.  115 

said,  "Jack,  I  haven't  been  feeling  right  for  a  week 
or  more.  I  just  knew  that  something  was  going  on 
wrong.  Now,  Jack,  since  you  can't  outdo  me,  be 
a  good  boy  and  tell  me  who  it  is  of  my  folks 
that's  sick." 

"Wai,  ef  I  mus',  I  mus',  but  'pon  my  honah  I 
done  all  I  could  not  ter  tell.  It's  Seth." 

"Seth!  Poor,  poor  Seth!  What  ails  him?" 
asked  Mrs.  Martin,  eagerly. 

"Smallpox." 

"Father  have  mercy!  That  dirty,  filthy  dis- 
ease in  my  family.  Why,  the  thoughts  of  it  are 
enough  to  kill  poor  Seth.  It's  a  wonder  he  isn't 
dead  and  buried.  I  wish  I  could  get  hold  of  the 
dirty,  lousy  scamp  that  gave  it  to  him.  I'd  wring 
his  neck  till  he — he — well,  I  wouldn't  kill  him. 
But  he'd  be  so  near  dead  that  he  would  enjoy 
life  when  he  got  back  to  it.  Poor,  poor  Seth. 
And  they  have  been  keeping  it  from  me.  They 
knew  I  was  ailing  a  little.  My  poor,  poor  boy. 
Mammy  will  be  there  soon.-  Rest  easy,  mammy 
is  coming,  Seth." 

Thus  rambled  Lucy  Martin,  Seth  Molair's  black 
mammy,  as  Uncle  Jack  whirled  her  along  through 
the  streets  of  Belrose  to  Seth  Molair's  home. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  CRUX. 

[HEN  Molair  had  sufficiently  recovered  from 
his  illness  to  resume  his  law  practice,  Baug 
called  upon  him  for  the  purpose  of  inviting 
his  co-operation  in  a  movement  that  would  give 
recognition  to  the  colored  citizens  of  Belrose  as  a 
part  of  the  city's  governing  force,  that  would 
clarify  the  atmosphere  that  was  giving  worry  to 
Eina  because  of  its  baleful  effects  on  Miss  Le- 
titia,  through  whom  it  was  blighting  the  lives 
of  Conroe  and  Clotille.  Inspired  by  the  thought 
that  Eina  was  profoundly  interested  in  the  out- 
come of  this  conference — this  effort  to  win  over 
to  a  cause  one  of  the  nation's  brightest  minds, 
Baug  was  keyed  up  to  the  point  of  doing  the  best 
of  which  he  was  capable. 

"Before  we  take  up  your  matter,  what  objec- 
tion have  you  to  our  white  primaries?"  Molair 
asked  of  Baug. 

"You  have  heard  of  the  Irishman's  comment  on 
Fredrick  Douglass,  have  you  not?"  asked  Baug. 

"Tell  it." 

"An  Irishman  hearing  Douglass  speak,  was 
very  much  impressed  with  his  oratory  and  pro- 
ceeded to  compliment  him.  Being  told  that  Doug- 
lass was  only  half  colored,  he  remarked :  'If  half 
a  naygur  can  speak  like  that,  what  could  a  whole 
naygur  do?' 


THE  CRUX.  117 

"Your  race  in  England  and  America  divides 
into  two  great,  almost  evenly  matched  parties,  into 
active  and  corrective,  creative  and  critical  forces. 
Your  Southern  white  primaries  dominated  by 
the  one  party  invite  in  only  one-half  of  the  soul 
of  your  race.  About  one-half  of  this  racial  soul, 
already  halved,  mark  you,  may  dominate  your 
white  primary,  and  the  verdict  of  this  half  of  the 
half  soul  of  the  race  is  accepted  without  a  serious 
try  out  before  the  whole  soul,"  said  Baug. 

"Here  is  a  thoughtful  colored  man,"  said  Mo- 
lair  to  himself,  growing  deeply  interested.  To 
Baug  he  said,  "Let  me  see  if  I  catch  the  point  of 
your  Douglass  joke.  You  think  that  for  a  full 
expression  of  the  soul  of  our  race  we  need  two 
parties,  creative  and  critical,  that  such  opposite 
forces  naturally  flourish  not  in  the  same  but  in 
opposing  parties  just  as  the  human  family  di- 
vides itself  into  sexes,  and  when  we  have  only 
one  party  just  one-half  of  the  racial  soul  is 
at  work,  the  Irishman's  'half  naygur.' ' 

"Exactly,  Mr.  Molair.  It  is  true  that  you  now 
and  then  let  down  your  bars  so  that  a  white 
man  of  a  political  faith  other  than  that  of  your 
dominant  party  can  enter  and  vote,  but  his  con- 
nection with  the  other  party  forces  him  to  come  in 
quietly,  so  that  you  still  miss  that  unfettered  fer- 
ment of  the  whole  Anglo-Saxon  spirit,  that  grand, 
free  play  of  all  the  forces  of  your  racial  soul  that 
has  in  reality  been  the  source  of  the  political 
greatness  of  your  race.  Now  just  read  this,  Mr. 


118  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Molair,"  said  Baug,  handing  him  a  clipping  from 
the  leading  daily  paper  of  Belrose. 

Mr.  Molair  read  as  follows : 

"Doubtless  when  the  official  conduct  of  this 
creature  is  laid  bare  it  will  reveal  him  as  a  grafter, 
hypocrite  and  dirty  whelp,  which  would  fit  with 
his  known  character  of  a  coarse,  revolting,  lying 
demagogue  and  disgusting  barbarian,  who  would 
never  associate  with  gentlemen  except  by  suffer- 
ance and  to  their  annoyance." 

"Well,  what  about  it?"  asked  Molair. 

"That  is  said  about  one  of  your  United  States 
Senators,  an  output  of  your  primary.  Can  you 
conceive  of  the  whole  soul  of  the  white  race 
being  in  travail  and  giving  birth  to  such  a 
man?  That  is  a  product  of  your  half  soul. 
You  Southern  white  people  constantly  say  that 
Senators  like  this  are  not  truly  representative  of 
your  people.  They  do  not  represent  your  people 
at  their  highest,  but  they  do  illustrate  the  fruit  of 
your  half  soul  system,  or  rather  your  quarter  soul 
system  of  elevating  men." 

"Since  you  and  our  white  primary  system  are 
in  the  ring,  what  other  lick  have  you  for  it?" 
asked  Molair. 

"I  am  a  patriot.  I  love  the  South.  I  would  like 
to  see  the  South  take  its  old-time  place  in  the 
councils  of  the  nation.  If  we  of  the  South  con- 
tinue to  send  our  quarter  soul  products  to  compete 
with  the  whole  soul  products  of  other  sections, 
where  the  white  race  crowns  its  victors  after  a 


THE  CRUX.  119 


try  out  before  the  full  racial  strength,  we  will 
always  be  behind,  I  fear,"  said  Baug  earnestly. 

"How  does  this  in  your  judgment  affect  the  col- 
ored people?"  asked  Molair. 

"Let  me  repeat  what  your  leading  paper  of 
Belrose  says  about  that  Senator. 

"  'Doubtless  when  the  official  conduct  of  this 
creature  is  laid  bare  it  will  reveal  him  as  a 
grafter,  hypocrite  and  dirty  whelp,  which  would 
fit  with  his  known  character  of  a  coarse,  revolt- 
ing, lying  demagogue  and  disgusting  barbarian, 
who  would  never  associate  with  gentlemen  except 
by  sufferance  and  to  their  annoyance.' 

"Now,  if  your  quarter  soul  system  produces 
that  type  of  a  man  for  a  Senator,  just  think  what 
your  chances  are  for  getting  jailers,  sheriffs, 
policemen,  prison  guards  and  the  like,  who,  armed 
with  the  State's  authority,  have  over  prisoners 
and  the  public  the  power  of  life  and  death,"  said 
Baug. 

"How  do  the  colored  people  of  Belrose  fare  at 
the  hands  of  the  police  force?"  asked  Molair. 

"You  know,  Mr.  Molair,  there  was  a  time  in 
England  when  a  man  would  be  hanged  for  a  com- 
paratively light  offense,  but  that  was  long,  long 
ago.  The  police  of  Belrose  have  turned  the  hand 
on  the  dial  of  civilization  back,  back,  back  to  those 
dark  days.  They  have  actually  made  it  an  offense, 
punishable  by  death,  for  a  colored  boy  or  man  to 
run  from  an  officer,  however  slight  the  offense." 

"Is  that  really  the  case?"  asked  Molair. 


120  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Mr.  Molair,"  said  Baug,  earnestly,  "what  else 
could  you  expect?  With  your  great  men  gone 
into  hiding  and  your  weaker  spirits  in  the  sad- 
dle, elected  to  office  without  regard  to  the  colored 
people,  they  often,  oh,  often,  actually  turn  the  gov- 
ernment into  an  engine  of  oppression.  Sheriffs 
sometimes  connive  at  lynchings.  Police  often  mur- 
der wantonly.  Gubernatorial  candidates,  finding 
that  our  hands  are  tied,  and  that  there  are  votes 
tc  be  made  by  bitterly  attacking  us,  do  not  hesitate 
to  so  do.  The  spirit  of  repression,  cultivated 
and  kept  at  fever  heat  by  the  seekers  for  votes, 
permeates  the  entire  social  atmosphere.  Denying 
us  a  voice,  the  government,  by  the  act  of  exclu- 
sion, brands  us  with  the  mark  of  a  Cain,  and  as 
we  go  forth  we  find  increasingly  the  hand  of  man 
raised  against  us.  And  I  predict  that,  with  the 
Negro  denied  a  voice  in  the  government,  this 
fact  in  itself  will  deepen  and  deepen  the  gulf 
between  the  races.  With  the  whites  being  gov- 
erned by  its  weaker  minds,  as  I  pointed  out,  and 
with  those  weaker  minds  in  charge  of  a  race, 
both  helpless  and  contemned,  you  may  guess  the 
rest." 

Continuing  Baug  said :  "No  class  of  colored  peo- 
ple in  Belrose  feel  safe.  If  you  knew  the  extent 
of  the  maltreatment  of  all  classes  of  colored  people 
by  some  members  of  the  police  force,  it  would 
amaze  you.  Brutal  assaults,  and  murder,  wanton, 
wanton,  wanton  murder  of  man  after  man  has 
been  committed  and  yet  not  even  a  reprimand  has 


THE  CRUX.  121 

ever  been  given  to  those  who  have  done  the  killing, 
though  witnesses  of  character,  white  and  colored, 
have  endeavored  to  bring  the  accused  to  trial." 

"Tell  me  exactly  now  what  you  desire  of  me/' 
Molair  said,  evidently  deeply  moved  by  what  Baug 
had  said. 

"Those  of  us  who  abide  in  the  Negro  race 
realize  the  disadvantages  that  come  to  us  as  a 
result  of  being  a  negligible  quantity  in  the  body 
politic.  The  type  of  men  that  comes  to  the  front 
has  respect  for  the  unit  of  power,  nothing  else; 
and,  so  long  as  the  Negro's  face  is  a  badge  of 
weakness,  it  will  be  just  as  difficult  to  maintain 
respect  for  his  interests  with  that  class  as  it  is  to 
keep  an  unmuzzled  horse  that  is  loose  in  a  pas- 
ture from  eating  green  grass  spread  out  in  abund- 
ance around  him.  We  desire  to  be  a  part  of  the 
government.  We  desire  that  you  make  the  race 
for  the  mayoralty  of  our  city  and  appeal  to  the 
whole  body  of  your  fellow  citizens,  white  and  col- 
ored, for  support.  When  those  who  persecute 
us  find  that  we  have  a  voice  in  the  making  and 
the  unmaking  of  officials  we  shall  receive  more 
humane  treatment.  Such,  Mr.  Molair,  is  our  re- 
quest of  you,"  said  Baug. 

"Of  course  you  know  that  you  are  asking  me 
to  cut  myself  off  from  all  hope  of  preferment 
save  that  of  a  local  nature.  If  I  take  hold  of 
you  here  on  an  independent  basis,  I  lose  my  party 
regularity.  You  know  what  that  means.  But 
that  is  not  vital.  A  Molair  is  not  dependent  upon 


122  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

public  station  for  a  place  in  history.  He  can  make 
his  own  throne,"  said  Molair  to  Baug. 

"I  do  not  see  the  matter  altogether  in  that 
light,  Mr.  Molair.  Party  and  sectional  lines  are 
being  less  and  less  tightly  drawn.  It  is  only  a  mat- 
ter of  a  few  years  before  the  nation  will  again 
pick  its  Presidents  from  our  section,  and  if  such 
men  as  you  are  put  forward  as  candidates  you  will 
find  no  happier,  more  enthusiastic  supporters  than 
will  be  the  colored  people.  Without  any  desire  to 
offer  flattery,  I  know  of  no  Southerner  better 
equipped  than  you  to  fill  that  high  office." 

"Thank  you,"  said  Molair,  who  really  valued 
the  good  will  of  the  colored  people. 

Continuing  Baug  said:  "That  man,  white  or 
black,  who  can  construct  a  political  yoke  in  which 
the  Negroes  and  the  best  white  people  of  the  South 
may  work  together  in  harmony  will  deserve  more 
than  the  presidency.  He  will  deserve  a  place  in 
the  ranks  of  the  immortals  alongside  the  two 
other  great  Southerners,  Thomas  Jefferson,  whose 
mind  coined  that  slow-burning  fuse,  'All  men  are 
created  equal/  and  Abraham  Lincoln,  who  issued 
the  emancipation  proclamation." 

"It  is  quite  a  picture  you  dangle  before  my 
eyes.  But,  preferment  beyond  our  city  life  or  no 
preferment,  I  have  had  recently  a  most  touching 
example  of  self-sacrifice  that  ought  to  spiritually 
equip  me  for  all  time  for  unselfish  service,"  said 
Molair. 

Arising  from  his  seat,  Molair  went  to  a  window 


THE  CRUX.  123 


and  looked  out  while  he  talked  to  Baug,  to  whom 
his  back  was  now  turned.  He  dared  not  trust 
himself  face  to  face  with  Baug  while  he  was 
discussing  the  subject  which  had  now  come  into 
his  mind,  for  he  was  upon  the  verge  of  shedding 
tears. 

When  he  had  regained  sufficient  control  of  his 
feelings  to  permit,  Molair  resumed  the  conversa- 
tion, saying:  "Yes,  Mammy  Lucy,  that  dear  soul 
who  in  my  infancy  crooned  above  my  cradle  and 
rocked  me  to  sleep  with  her  lullaby  songs;  who 
saw  that  my  every  boyish  whim  was  gratified; 
who  washed  and  anointed  my  bruises  and  com- 
forted my  childish  heart  when,  beaten  and  humil- 
iated in  a  fight,  I  fled  to  the  shelter  of  her  apron ; 
who  more  than  once,  with  her  sympathetic  na- 
ture, wooed  disease  from  me  and  drew  it  upon 
herself — Mammy  Lucy  taught  me  in  its  fullness 
the  lesson  of  human  love,  when,  hearing  of  my  ill- 
ness, she  came  with  her  wan  face  and  emaciated 
form,  and  took  my  life  from  the  altar  of  death 
and  in  its  stead  sweetly  laid  thereon  her  own. 
With  my  heart  green  with  the  memory  of  her 
sublime  self-renunciation,  I  am  in  a  mood,  as  a 
sort  of  atonement,  to  forego  vital  interests  of  my 
own  for  the  sake  of  the  interests  of  others." 

After  Molair  had  delivered  himself  thus,  he 
stood  in  silent  meditation  for  awhile,  then  turned 
and  walked  toward  Baug,  and  said,  "Go  your  way. 
This  is  a  grave,  grave  question.  I  must  have  time 
for  reflection.  I  received  a  peculiar  letter  not  long 


124  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

since  that  has  put  me  to  thinking  on  this  ques- 
tion more  deeply  than  ever  before.  I  know  not 
now  what  my  decision  will  be.  May  heaven  grant 
me  light." 


CHAPTER  XVII. 
MOLAIR  ON  THE  ALERT. 

|N  keeping  with  a  suggestion  from  Baug, 
Molair  had  decided  to  keep  watch  on  the 
police  force  to  find  out  just  how  the  Negro 
population  was  faring,  so  we  find  him  morning 
after  morning  sitting  in  the  city  court  room,  which 
was  usually  filled  for  the  most  part  with  colored 
people  of  the  lower  order.  Besotted  men  and  slov- 
enly women,  denizens  of  the  slums,  constituted  the 
great  majority  of  those  on  trial.  Drunkenness, 
fights  as  the  result  of  jealousy,  petty  thefts  and  va- 
grancy were  the  charges  as  a  rule  lodged  against 
the  accused.  There  happened  to  be  in  the  group 
on  this  particular  morning  a  nicely  dressed  col- 
ored boy  with  an  open,  honest  countenance,  and 
his  appearance  quickened  in  Molair  an  interest  in 
him.  That  we  may  understand  just  how  this  boy, 
whose  fate  played  an  important  part  in  shaping 
Molair's  decision,  happened  to  be  on  trial  as  a 
vagrant  it  is  necessary  to  drop  back  somewhat 
into  his  history. 

One  day,  a  few  weeks  previous  to  this  trial, 
about  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  a  crowd  of 
people,  mostly  colored,  had  gathered  around  a 
merry-go-round  located  on  a  vacant  lot  in  Belrose. 
Charlie  Douglass,  a  colored  boy,  driving  a  flour 
wagon,  passing  near  the  assembled  crowd,  caught 


126  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

sight  of  a  neatly  dressed  little  colored  girl  with 
a  package  of  school  books  under  her  arms.  He 
halted  his  wagon,  dismounted,  and  drew  near  to 
this  girl,  ostensibly  for  the  purpose  of  looking  at 
the  merry-go-round,  but  in  reality  to  be  near  the 
little  girl  that  had  attracted  his  attention. 

In  the  assembled  throng  there  was  a  drunken 
white  man  who  was  using  profane  language  in 
the  presence  of  a  number  of  colored  girls  and 
women.  The  little  girl  who  had  attracted  Char- 
lie's attention  was  in  the  group  near  the  man 
using  the  objectionable  language. 

Charlie  walked  up  to  the  man  quietly  and  said 
to  him  very  politely,  "Mister,  please  don't  talk 
that  way  so  the  girls  and  women  can  hear  you." 

The  drunken  man  turned  to  see  who  it  was 
that  accosted  him.  Enraged  at  the  thought  of  a 
Negro  daring  to  criticise  his  conduct,  he  drew  a 
pocket  knife,  opened  it  and  rushed  toward  Char- 
lie. 

As  the  lad  had  taken  pains  to  speak  so  politely, 
he  was  taken  by  surprise  by  this  sudden  onslaught 
and  had  to  run  backward  to  avoid  being  cut.  As 
the  man  kept  coming  toward  him,  Charlie,  as  soon 
as  he  could  turn,  did  so  and  ran  with  all  the 
speed  at  his  command,  the  white  man  in  hot  pur- 
suit. 

The  girls  and  women  shouted :  "Run,  boy,  run ! 
Run,  boy,  run !" 

The  feet  of  the  drunken  man  being  somewhat 


MOLAIR  ON  THE  ALERT.  127 

unsteady,  he  fell,  and  thus  gave  Charlie  time  to 
make  his  escape. 

Dora  Mack,  the  neatly  dressed,  nice  looking 
brown-skinned  little  girl,  that  had  attracted  Char- 
lie's attention,  now  made  a  hero  of  him.  She 
thought  it  was  so  nice  in  him  to  speak  to  the  hor- 
rid man,  and  the  deft  manner  in  which  he  ran 
backward  and  the  speed  that  he  made  when  he 
could  get  his  back  to  the  man,  were  simply  fine, 
as  Dora  viewed  the  matter.  On  her  way  to  and 
from  school  each  day  Dora  passed  the  place 
where  Charlie  worked,  and  now  took  occasion  to 
greet  him  with  a  smile  whenever  she  saw  him. 
He  was  a  nice  looking  colored  boy,  even  when 
covered  almost  from  head  to  foot  with  flour;  that 
is,  pretty  little  Dora  Mack  thought  so. 

To  Charlie's  way  of  thinking,  Dora  was  just  the 
girl  for  him,  and  he  decided  to  try  to  stand  a  little 
higher  in  her  favor.  The  plan  which  he  hit  upon 
to  advance  himself  in  her  esteem  was  to  change 
his  job  from  the  handling  of  flour  to  one  that 
would  permit  him  to  wear  nice  clothes  all  the  time. 

"Dora  is  entitled  to  a  boy  that  looks  nice  all 
the  time,"  thought  Charlie. 

Thus,  much  to  his  mother's  chagrin,  Charlie  de- 
cided to  give  up  his  job.  Realizing  that  her  son, 
who,  since  the  death  of  her  husband,  was  her  main 
support,  was  doing  about  as  well  in  point  of  wages 
as  a  Belrose  colored  boy  was  expected  to  do,  Mrs. 
Douglass,  his  mother,  strenuously  opposed  the 
change.  Charlie  tried  to  mollify  her  feelings  by 


128  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

pouring  into  her  lap  all  his  little  savings,  but  even 
this  did  not  heal  the  breach  between  them. 
Nevertheless,  Charlie  quit  his  job  and  "dressed 
up,"  to  enjoy  a  few  days'  vacation  and  to  be  able 
to  walk  as  far  toward  her  home  with  Dora  on 
her  way  from  school  as  the  fear  of  Dora's 
mother  would  allow  him,  Dora  not  being  permit- 
ted as  yet  to  receive  company. 

This  worked  all  right  for  a  few  days  until 
Charlie's  employer  noticed  that  he  was  simply 
lounging  around.  This  employer  had  not  been 
successful  in  getting  as  satisfactory  a  hand  as 
Charlie  had  been,  and  he  was  therefore  all  the 
more  vexed  at  him  for  causing  his  discomfort 
and  loss  by  leaving.  He  offered  the  boy  an  in- 
crease in  wages  to  return  to  work,  but  it  was  not 
more  money  that  Charlie  wanted  just  now,  but 
a  job  that  would  permit  the  constant  wearing  of 
clothes  nice  enough  for  Dora's  beau,  pretty,  tidy, 
little  Dora's  beau. 

Thinking  that  he  might  be  doing  Charlie,  Char- 
lie's mother  and  himself  a  service,  the  employer 
told  a  policeman  of  Charlie's  lounging  place  and 
suggested  that  it  might  serve  as  a  good  lesson 
to  arrest  him  as  a  vagrant.  Accordingly,  one  day 
before  Dora  came  along,  the  policeman  put  Charlie 
under  arrest  and  took  him  to  the  police  station. 
It  was  thus  that  he  made  his  way  into  court 
where  Molair  caught  sight  of  and  became  inter- 
ested in  him. 

Charlie's  mother  being  unable  to  pay  his  fine, 


MOLAIR  ON  THE  ALERT.  129 

the  boy  was  sentenced  to  the  chain  gang.  This  was 
a  most  galling  thought  for  him,  it  having  been 
the  pride  of  his  family  that  none  of  them  in  any 
of  its  branches  had  up  to  that  time  been  arrested. 
But  that  which  pricked  him  to  the  very  heart  was 
the  thought  that  Dora  must  know  of  his  incarcera- 
tion and  perhaps  see  him  at  work  with  the  pick 
about  his  ankle. 

The  carts  in  which  the  prisoners  rode  from  the 
police  court  to  the  streets,  from  which  they  were 
to  clean  the  mud  by  scraping  with  hoes,  were 
brought  around,  filled  and  started  off.  To  Char- 
lie's dismay  the  carts  stopped  on  one  of  the  streets 
along  which  Dora  always  journeyed  to  her  home. 
But  her  journey  on  this  part  of  the  street  was 
only  for  a  few  blocks,  and  Charlie  hoped  that 
they  would  have  cleaned  off  that  part  along  which 
Dora  came  before  her  hour  for  passing,  and  would 
thus  be  out  of  sight  from  the  point  where  she 
would  have  to  turn  the  corner  leaving  that  street. 

But  the  day  was  a  little  sultry,  and  those  in 
the  chain  gang  were  not  disposed  to  work  very 
rapidly.  Charlie  worked  very  hard,  doing  about 
as  much  work  as  any  three  of  the  others  in  his 
eagerness  to  have  the  gang  through  with  Dora's 
part  of  the  street  ere  she  came  along.  But  his 
course  in  working  so  rapidly  displeased  his  easy- 
going fellow-prisoners,  and  they  worked  all  the 
more  slowly  because  of  this  fact. 

As  time  wore  on  it  began  to  look  as  though 
they  were  not  to  do  the  amount  of  cleaning  de- 


130        .  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

sired  by  Charlie,  and  desperation  and  despair 
settled  over  his  young  heart.  His  wild,  nervous 
look,  his  constant  glancing  around  as  if  expecting 
something,  the  dark  brooding  that  his  face  re- 
vealed, his  working  ahead  of  his  companions,  at- 
tracted the  attention  of  Sherman  Elliott,  the  white 
guard,  who,  unknown  to  Charlie,  was  keeping  a 
special  watch  on  him. 

Glancing  down  the  street  Charlie  saw  a  group 
of  high  school  children  coming.  The  pick  which 
he  had  around  his  ankle  was  much  worn,  his  keen 
eye  having  noted  this  defect  when  choosing  the 
one  to  put  on.  He  felt  that  the  pick  could  be 
broken  if  one  was  but  willing  to  stand  the  jar  of 
the  lick  necessary.  Moving  to  the  curbing,  Char- 
lie dashed  the  pick  against  the  stone  and  sundered 
it.  Away  Charlie  bounded,  thinking  only  of  Dora 
and  desiring  to  be  out  of  her  sight  as  she  passed 
the  chain  gang.  The  guard  who  had  been  watch- 
ing for  this  moment,  lifted  his  gun  and  fired, 
wounding  Charlie  in  the  back.  The  boy  fell  for- 
ward on  his  face  and  a  number  of  bystanders 
rushed  to  him  to  lift  him  up. 

"Don't — don't  turn  my  face  up.  Dora,  Dora, 
Dora!"  murmured  Charlie. 

Thinking  that  turning  him  over  might  perhaps 
hurt  him,  the  men  followed  his  request  and  al- 
lowed him  to  lie  with  his  face  downward,  while 
they  telephoned  for  an  ambulance. 

"She  won't  see;  she  won't  see,"  murmured 
Charlie,  faintly,  his  face  still  toward  the  earth. 


MOLAIR  ON  THE  ALERT.  131 

Slowly  the  smile  of  satisfaction  over  the  fact 
that  Dora  would  not  see  and  know  him  faded 
from  Charlie's  face  and  the  little  fellow  passed 
into  eternal  silence.  If  the  passing  Dora  looked 
upon  his  lifeless  form  he  at  least  did  not  know  it. 

Sherman  Elliott's  shot  and  the  fact  that  there 
was  not  the  slightest  effort  to  molest  him  de- 
cided Molair's  course,  and  he  crossed  the  Rubicon. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

KICKED    OUT. 

the  campaign  that  followed  Seth  Molair's 
announcement  as  a  candidate  for  the  may- 
oralty there  was  a  development  in  the  polit- 
ical situation  which  neither  Molair  nor  Baug 
had  foreseen,  and  which  served  to  complicate 
matters  far  beyond  their  anticipation. 

The  "organization"  of  the  dominant  party,  here- 
tofore fearing  no  appeal  to  the  larger  sense  of 
the  community,  being  confident  that  the  one  party 
sentiment  would  hold  it  in  power  regardless 
of  the  mental  and  moral  calibre  of  its  candidates, 
had  uniformly  preferred  to  put  forward  men  of 
the  weaker  mould  who  might  be  the  more  easily 
used  as  puppets.  But  the  moment  it  became  known 
that  Seth  Molair  was  to  try  for  the  mayoralty, 
independent  of  "organization"  influences,  the  "or- 
ganization" saw  at  once  that  heroic  action  was 
required. 

The  offices  for  years  ahead  had  been  parceled 
out,  but  they  now  deemed  it  advisable  to  withhold 
the  candidacy  of  the  weakling  whom  they  had 
designed  for  the  mayor's  chair,  and  to  nominate 
a  man  of  the  Molair  type.  Thus  Molair  found 
himself  pitted  against  a  far  stronger  personality 
than  either  he  or  Baug  had  calculated  upon. 

The  contest  was  truly  one  of  the  most  exciting 
in  the  history  of  Belrose.  It  seemed  that 


KICKED  OUT.  133 

the  cleansing,  testing,  developing  influence  of  a 
genuine  battle,  the  very  life-breath  of  other  sec- 
tions had  at  last  come  to  this  hitherto  compla- 
cent, if  stagnant  (so  far  as  political  thought  was 
concerned),  city  of  Belrose. 

When  the  campaign  was  at  its  height  and  it 
was  discovered  that  the  whites  were  so  evenly 
divided  that  the  Negro  vote  constituted  the  bal- 
ance of  power,  it  was  agreed  by  "organization" 
influences  that  an  effort  should  be  made  to  draw 
the  support  of  the  Negroes  away  from  the  Molair 
ticket. 

In  view  of  the  long  record  of  hostility  to  the 
Negro  voters  on  the  part  of  the  "organization," 
no  hope  was  entertained  of  having  large  numbers 
of  them  to  suddenly  change  and  come  to  its  res- 
cue, so  money  was  furnished  to  an  element  of 
whites  that  manned  the  party  under  whose  name 
the  bulk  of  the  colored  people  usually  voted,  to 
the  end  that  a  ticket  bearing  the  old  name  might 
be  brought  out  to  withhold  Negro  support  from 
Molair. 

One  Hon.  Thomas  Barksdale,  perennial  can- 
didate for  the  postmastership  of  Belrose,  was 
commissioned  to  harness  the  Negro  voters  to  this 
decoy  movement.  A  group  of  Negro  ward  poli- 
ticians was  summoned  to  a  conference  with  the 
Hon.  Thomas  Barksdale,  and  Uncle  Jack,  hearing 
of  the  conference,  decided  to  be  present.  At  the 
appointed  hour  the  committee  of  Negroes  put  in 
its  appearance  at  Barksdale's  office. 


134  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Uncle  Jack  who  prided  himself  upon  dealing 
with  none  but  "quality  white  folks"  looked  with 
manifest  disgust  at  the  surroundings.  Barks- 
dale's  office  was  without  carpet,  the  desk  antiquat- 
ed, the  library  of  books  disarranged,  the  whole 
wearing  an  unkempt  appearance. 

Tilted  back  in  a  chair,  a  great,  sickly,  soulless 
smile  upon  his  face,  sat  the  Hon.  Thomas  Barks- 
dale,  having  upon  his  head  a  once  high  beaver 
hat  upon  which,  it  would  seem  from  its  appear- 
ance, some  Goliath  of  Gath  had  sat,  and  which 
some  little  David  had  subsequently  tried  to 
straighten.  His  smile  disclosed  the  ragged  rem- 
nants of  his  teeth  and  at  the  same  time  allowed 
two  slight  streams  of  tobacco  juice  to  ooze  out  of 
the  corners  of  his  mouth,  anointing  the  ends  of 
his  sandy  mustache,  which,  shaped  like  the  claws 
of  a  crab,  nestled  near  his  jaws. 

When  ready  for  the  conference,  the  Hon. 
Thomas  Barksdale  stood  up,  bringing  in  bold 
relief  his  tall,  angular  frame,  his  ill-fitting  Prince 
Albert  coat,  his  pantaloons,  baggy  at  the  knees 
but  a  little  shirky  about  reaching  well  down  to 
this  statesman's  very  broad  foundation. 

"We  are  all  here,  I  suppose,"  said  the  Hon. 
Thomas  Barksdale,  in  that  peculiar  drawl  com- 
mon to  the  uncultivated  whites. 

"We  is,"  responded  Uncle  Jack,  who,  to  the 
surprise  of  all,  assumed  the  role  of  spokesman. 

"I've  summoned  you  here  to  tell  you  colored 


KICKED  OUT.  135 

folks  that  now  is  your  chance,"  said  the  Hon. 
Thomas. 

"Oh,  thank  you,  sah;  thank  you,  sah,"  said 
Uncle  Jack,  effusively. 

The  Hon.  Thomas  drew  near  one  of  the  group, 
laid  a  hand  on  his  shoulder  familiarly,  closed  an 
eye,  and  with  the  index  finger  of  his  free  hand 
began  to  wax  eloquent. 

"Yes,  sir,  your  day  has  come.  There  is  some 
of  us  who  have  fit,  bled  and  died,  standing  up  fur 
your  people,"  said  he. 

"Yes,  sah;  yes,  sah,"  said  Uncle  Jack.  "Jes*  ez 
yer  says,  some  uv  yer  hab  fit,  fled  and  flied  for  us 
cullud  folks." 

The  Hon.  Mr.  Barksdale  opened  his  other  eye 
to  see  if  he  was  quite  correct,  for  he  fancied  he 
had  caught  a  note  of  sarcasm  in  Uncle  Jack's 
voice.  But  Uncle  Jack's  countenance  seemed  so 
sober  that  the  Hon.  Mr.  Barksdale  decided  that 
he  was  mistaken.  He  therefore  closed  the  eye 
again  and  proceeded : 

"We  set  you  all  free,  you  colored  people,  and 
we  are  going  to  stand  by  you  to  the  last." 

"Yes,  sah,  I  hez  heered  yer  riccord  in  de 
civul  war  'scussed  ergin  an'  ergin,  but  I  allus 
heered  dat  yer  had  de  riccord  ez  er  runner  an* 
not  as  er  stanner,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  humbly 
enough. 

The  Hon.  Mr.  Barksdale  brought  his  closed  eye 
back  into  service,  dropped  his  hand  from  the 
man's  shoulder,  and  stepped  back  a  little. 


136  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Now,  I  can  explain  that  record.  You  see  I 
knew  that  the  Yankees  needed  spies  in  the  South, 
and  that  is  why  I  put  on  dresses  during  the  war, 
and  there  were  things  that  I  knew,  that  nobody 
else  knew,  and  if  I  had  got  killed,  what  would 
have  become  of  my  knowledge?  So  whenever  a 
fight  came  up,  just  for  the  sake  of  my  country,  I 
always  sacrificed  my  keen  desire  to  fight  and  ran 
so  as  to  preserve  my  knowledge  for  the  benefit  of 
the  country.  I  hated  to  run,  but  as  I  said,  I  sac- 
rificed my  feelings  for  my  country." 

"Takin'  dat  view  uv  de  mattah  an*  jedgin'  frum 
de  speed  dat  yer  air  said  ter  hab  made  in  gittin' 
out  uv  Belrose  w'en  de  sojers  come  in,  yer  wuz 
sartainly  one  uv  de  greatis'  dat  is,  at  leas'  one 
uv  de  swiftis'  paytruts  dat  de  war  purduced," 
said  Uncle  Jack. 

Uncle  Jack  now  subsided  and  allowed  the  Hon. 
Thomas  to  submit  his  proposition.  When  he  had 
finished,  the  appointed  spokesman  of  the  group, 
who  had  been  well  groomed  by  Baug,  said: 

"Mr.  Barksdale,  we  have  followed  the  lead  of 
men  of  your  station  in  life  for  several  decades. 
Under  your  leadership  we  find  the  Constitution 
nullified,  segregation  practiced,  official  maltreat- 
ment in  full  swing.  You  have  been  powerless  to 
influence  the  situation.  Another  class  of  the 
whites  has  been  found  to  work  with  our  leaders 
and  we  are  going  to  see  what  they  can  save  from 
the  wreck.  We  would  to  God  the  whites  had  con- 
sented sooner  to  work  with  us  and  had  not  left 


KICKED  OUT.  137 

us  to  the  mercies  of  those  who  sacked  the  State 
government,  escaped  with  the  loot  and  left  us  with 
the  odium.  Goodbye." 

As  the  Negroes  filed  out,  the  Hon.  Thomas 
Barksdale  stood  with  his  mouth  wide  open  in 
astonishment.  Uncle  Jack  was  the  last  to  leave, 
and  the  Hon.  Mr.  Barksdale  had  so  far  recovered 
his  self-possession,  or  had  so  much  the  farther 
lost  it,  that  he  administered  a  kick  to  Uncle  Jack. 

"Hah,  hah,  hah ;  dat's  'bout  whut  forty  years  uv 
servin'  hez  brung  our  people  frum  de  pie  counter 
man;  er  kick  out,"  said  Uncle  Jack. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE  JACK. 

I'LL  never  believe  it!  I'll  never  believe  it! 
until  I  see  it  with  these  two  eyes  of  mine, 
and  then  I'll  doubt  it,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

"Well,  cousin,  you  will  see.  Seth  Molair  has 
pledged  it,  and  he  is  a  man  of  his  word,"  re- 
sponded Clotille. 

"Yes,  but  Seth  Molair  is  just  one  man,  even 
if  he  is  the  mayor  of  Belrose.  The  idea  of  the 
white  people  of  Belrose  tolerating  colored  men  on 
the  fire  department!  They  will  never  do  it,"  said 
Miss  Letitia. 

"Cousin,  you  are  too  hard.  I  know  two  South- 
ern cities  in  which  white  people  teach  colored 
children  in  the  public  schools.  I  know  three 
Southern  cities  in  which  colored  men  are  on  the 
police  force,"  replied  Clotille. 

"Yes,  but  that  isn't  Belrose.  When  the  white 
people  of  Belrose  put  colored  men  on  the  fire 
department  I  will  know  that  the  millenium  is 
nigh  at  hand,"  said  Miss  Letitia  in  such  a  manner 
that  Clotille  knew  that  she  desired  the  conver- 
sation to  close. 

Upon  his  election  to  the  office  of  mayor,  Seth 
Molair  had  asked  Baug  to  name  him  some  arm 
of  the  public  service  in  which  he  would  like  to 
see  colored  men  employed. 


TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE   JACK.  139 

Baug  had  conferred  with  Clotille  and  she  had 
suggested  the  fire  department.  Clotille  knew  of 
Miss  Letitia's  ardent  admiration  for  fire  fight- 
ers, and  felt  that  if  colored  men  could  be  gotten 
on  that  department  it  would  serve  to  make  a  deep 
impression  upon  the  mind  of  her  cousin  and  cause 
her  to  feel  that  after  all  that  which  seemed  im- 
possible could  come  to  pass.  So,  when  Baug 
brought  to  Clotille  the  assurance  that  a  colored  fire 
company  would  be  established  she  conveyed  the 
information  to  her  cousin,  and  we  have  seen  how 
the  latter  received  it. 

But  even  the  doubting  Miss  Letitia  could  not 
hold  out  against  a  fact,  against  the  testimony  of 
her  own  eyes.  When  the  necessary  building  had 
been  erected  and  the  company  installed,  Miss  Leti- 
tia would  pass  by  the  place  several  times  a  day  to 
catch  sight  of  what  she  regarded  as  one  of  the 
marvels  of  the  age.  When  she  would  awake  in 
the  morning  her  first  act  would  be  to  attire  her- 
self and  walk  over  to  the  colored  fire  company's 
engine-house,  as  if  to  see  whether  or  not  it  had 
been  carted  away  during  the  night.  Though  bit- 
terly opposed  to  the  use  of  bicycles  on  the  part 
of  women,  Miss  Letitia  bought  one  and  learned  to 
ride,  so  that  she  might  be  able  to  follow  up  fires 
and  see  the  colored  firemen  fight  the  flames. 

When  at  last  Miss  Letitia  did  see  the  colored 
firemen  actually  fighting  the  flames,  her  enthu- 
siasm knew  no  bounds,  and  Clotille  felt  that  at  last 
the  pessimism  with  which  her  cousin  was  afflicted 
now  had  a  chance  to  pass  away. 


140  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

But  this  very  success  (the  establishment  of 
harmonious  political  relations  between  the  races 
resulting  in  the  colored  fire  company)  had  raised 
another  difficulty.  Miss  Letitia  was  so  elated  over 
the  new  company  that  the  very  thought  of  ever 
losing  it  affected  her  greatly.  She  realized  that  it 
was  the  Negro's  wise  course  in  the  matter  of  vot- 
ing that  had  secured  the  company,  and  she,  there- 
fore, became  deeply  concerned  about  the  right  to 
vote. 

"Oh,  I  am  so  afraid  that  some  of  those  old  dis- 
franchising laws  will  come  here  some  day  and 
upset  all  this  nice  work.  I  will  never  feel  safe 
until  the  Supreme  Court  has  spoken  against  the 
discriminating  laws  in  other  States.  If  that  could 
be  brought  about,  I  believe  I  could  sleep  at  night." 

It  was  thus  that  Clotille  discovered  that  she 
had  a  new  and  grave  problem  on  her  hands. 

Straight  from  the  interview  with  her  cousin, 
in  which  this  new-found  impediment  was  discov- 
ered, Clotille  rushed  to  Eina's  home. 

"Eina,  Eina,  my  cousin,  I  do  believe,  is  begin- 
ning to  see  the  light.  But  one  more  step  needs 
to  be  taken  before  our  road  is  perfectly  clear." 

"Well,  in  the  name  of  the  blessed  Virgin,  let 
us  get  that  out  of  the  way.  I  do  believe  I  would 
as  soon  contract  to  move  a  mountain  as  to  get 
you  and  that  Conroe  married,"  said  Eina,  laugh- 
ingly. 

"Now  tell  me  the  next  step,  tell  me  quickly  and 
let  me  get  to  work  on  it,"  Eina  continued. 


TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE   JACK.  141 

"We  must  wipe  from  the  constitutions  of  cer- 
tain Southern  states  such  of  their  laws  as  have 
the  effect  of  disfranchising  colored  people  on  ac- 
count of  their  racial  connection,"  said  Clotille. 

Eina's  beautiful,  cheerful  face  took  on  a  sober 
look  at  this  announcement,  the  great  difficulties 
in  the  way  of  having  the  laws  declared  unconsti- 
tutional occurring  to  her. 

Remembering  a  Boston  acquaintance,  eminent 
in  the  legal  profession,  who  had  given  long  and 
careful  study  to  the  legal  aspects  of  the  suffrage 
question,  Eina  forthwith  communicated  with  him, 
inclosing  an  appropriate  fee,  and  in  due  course  of 
mail  received  from  him  a  statement  outlining  a 
course  of  procedure  which  in  his  judgment  would 
beyond  doubt  force  an  unequivocal  declaration 
from  the  Supreme  Court. 

When  Eina  received  the  plan  she  had  Clotille 
to  call  and  confer  with  her  over  it,  a  call  that 
the  perturbed  Clotille  was  happy  indeed  to  be 
able  to  make.  The  plan  outlined  involved  the  co- 
operation of  an  illiterate  Negro,  and  after  a  thor- 
ough discussion  of  all  the  probabilities  and  pos- 
sibilities in  the  case  it  was  decided  that  Uncle 
Jack  was  the  best  equipped  man  of  their  acquaint- 
ance to  carry  through  the  plan  with  the  least  pos- 
sible friction  and  personal  danger.  The  two  girls 
therefore  summoned  him  into  the  conference  with 
them. 

Uncle  Jack  thought  he  was  being  summoned  to 
tell  some  of  his  jokes,  so  he  came  bringing  his 


142  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"chaw  of  terbacky  an'  cuss  spit  daw,"  and  wear- 
ing a  smile  on  his  aged  face.  He  had  mustered  to 
the  fore  in  his  mind  some  of  his  most  laughable 
anecdotes,  but  the  serious  looks  on  the  faces  of  the 
two  young  women  chased  away  his  smile  and  his 
jocular  mood. 

As  Eina  began  to  unfold  to  Uncle  Jack  the  dire 
need  of  upsetting  the  laws  in  question,  he  was 
emphatic  in  his  approval,  nodding  his  head  vigor- 
ously, saying  "Dat's  so,  dat's  so,"  and  giving 
every  evidence  of  feeling  highly  honored  that  the 
young  women  had  called  him  in  to  help  consider 
so  grave  a  matter. 

Eina  next  explained  the  plan  by  means  of 
which  she  hoped  to  have  the  case  so  brought  as 
to  force  a  decision.  Though  not  a  Supreme  Court 
lawyer,  the  gallant  Uncle  Jack  assured  Eina  that 
it  was  the  best  plan  ever  devised. 

"Now  for  the  man,"  said  Clotille. 

"De  lawyah?  Uv  co'se  I  says  Baug,"  quickly 
responded  Uncle  Jack. 

"No,  not  the  lawyer.  We  can  get  him  all  right. 
We  mean  the  colored  man  that  will  carry  out 
this  plan  that  I  have  explained  and  thus  bring 
on  the  crisis,"  said  Eina. 

"I  see.  I  see.  Uv  co'se  yer  wouldn't  want  me. 
I  is  er  ill-littered  man  an*  couldn't  hardly  be 
'spected  ter  bring  de  crisis  ter  yer  all  ez  I  wouldn't 
know  it  ef  I  seed  it.  I  ain't  nevah  seed  one." 

Eina  and  Clotille  smiled  at  Uncle  Jack's  con- 
ception of  a  crisis,  while  Clotille  said,  "Well,  you 


TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE   JACK.  143 

would  be  very  likely  to  know  this  crisis  when  it 
came,  Uncle  Jack.  And  you  are  the  very  man  that 
we  have  decided  upon." 

Uncle  Jack  lifted  his  head  back,  opened  wide 
his  eyes,  while  his  jaws  fell  slightly  apart.  This 
serious  piece  of  business  was  indeed  a  surprise 
to  him. 

"Yer  ladies  jes'  wait  heah  er  few  minutes  an* 
I'll  come  back  an*  give  yer  er  answer." 

So  saying,  Uncle  Jack  arose  and  slowly  left 
the  room,  his  frame  having  lost  its  erect  carriage. 

After  a  short  stay  in  the  stable,  where  he  had 
stood  with  bowed  head  and  folded  arms,  reflect- 
ing, Uncle  Jack  returned  to  the  room  where  Eina 
and  Clotille  sat  awaiting  him. 

"Fur  yer  ladies  ter  understan'  de  feelin's  dat 
I  been  goin'  through  since  yer  all  tole  me  whut 
yer  wanted,"  began  Uncle  Jack,  "I'll  hab  ter  tell 
yer  er  leetul  'sperunce  uv  mine  dat  I  had  durin' 
uv  de  war. 

"One  day  w'en  de  war  wuz  'bout  at  its  wust,  I 
wuz  goin'  through  de  woods  wid  er  gun  an'  two 
bird  dogs.  One  uv  dem  dogs  wuz  name  Abe  Link- 
turn  an'  de  udder  Jeff  Davis.  One  uv  'um  wuz 
fatten  t'other  an'  I  had  ter  be  on  my  p's  an'  q's 
ter  keep  outen  trouble.  Yer  see  bofe  Yankees  an' 
'federates  wuz  er  roun'  our  country.  W'en  er  'fed- 
erate come  up  ter  me  an'  axt  me  de  name  uv  de 
dogs,  I  allus  pinted  ter  de  fat  dog  an'  say  his 
name  wuz  Jeff  Davis,  an'  ter  de  pore  one  an'  say 
his  name  wuz  Abe  Linktum.  W'en  I  would  meet 


144  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Yankees  an'  dey  would  ax  me  I'd  jes'  turn  it  er 
roun'  and  de  fat  one  would  be  Abe  and  de  pore 
one  Jeff. 

"Dem  pore  dogs  names  wuz  changed  so  much 
I  dunno  wedder  dey  knowed  deyself  whut  wuz 
dare  names." 

"Hah,  hah,  hah,"  laughed  Uncle  Jack,  memory 
of  his  shrewdness  lighting  up  his  dark  face. 

"But  wunst  I  wuz  in  er  jam,  shuah  'nough. 
Some  Yankees  wanted  one  uv  my  dogs  one  day, 
an'  says  ter  me,  'which  one  uv  dem  dogs  is  de 
bes'?  Yer  see  ef  I  said  Jeff,  which  wuz  de  pore 
one,  under  de  succumstances,  dey  mought  say, 
'Ugh,  huh,  yer  give  Jeff  Davis'  name  to  de  bes' 
dog?  Yer  see  day  mought  not  'uve  'scused  me 
fur  namin'  de  bes'  dog  Jeff  even  ef  he  wuz  de  pore 
dog.  Ef  I  said  Abe  wuz  de  bes',  he  bein'  bofe 
bes'  an'  fat,  dey  would  er  shuah  tuk  him.  So 
dare  I  wuz.  I  didun't  hab  no  time  ter  think,  but 
it  jes'  popped  inter  me  whut  ter  say. 

"I  said,  'Gemmen,  ter  tell  yer  de  truf,  ain't  nare 
one  uv  dem  dogs  much  ercount.  Darn  um,  bofe 
uv  'um  sucks  eggs.'  Hah,  hah,  hah;  dat  got  'um. 

"Now,  it  hez  jes'  allus  been  my  way  ter  try 
ter  fin'  some  kinder  how  ter  git  er  long  wid  de 
white  folks  'dout  fussin'  wid  'um.  Whut  yer  all 
air  sirgestin'  is  er  long  er  leetul  diffunt  line,  an' 
er  feller  had  ter  ketch  his  breath  er  leetul.  Now, 
I  doan'  know  ez  yer  all  ketch  on  ter  whut  I  is 
tryin'  ter  say.  I  says  ergin,  ladies,  it  wuz  jes'  er 
new  line. 


TIGHT  PLACE  FOR  UNCLE   JACK.  145 

"But  I  'spose  times  hab  changed  an*  ez  er  cullud 
race  we  mus'  stan'  up  now  an*  meet  de  diffunt 
qusshuns  face  ter  face,  face  ter  face.  Wai,  you 
young  uns  is  able  ter  do  dat.  We  ole  uns  wuz 
ignerrunt  an*  we  jes'  bowed  an*  scraped  our  way 
through  ez  bes'  we  could,  'tell  yer  all  could  git 
sense  ernough  ter  make  er  bettah  stan'. 

"Sink  er  swim,  keep  er  live  er  die,  ez  de  poet 
says,  I  am  wid  yer  ladies.  But  'fore  I  starts  out 
on  dat  mission  I  jes'  mus'  hab  er  vacation.  W'en 
dat  is  ovah,  yer  goin'  ter  see  yer  Unce  Jack  corn- 
in'  right  back  ter  take  up  de  cross  yer  young  uns 
hez  purpared  fur  him.  Uncle  Jack  ain't  feered. 
Nevah  run  frum  nutthin'  but  er  sperrit  er  ghost 
er  sumpin'  lak  dat  since  I  been  bawn  ter  die." 


CHAPTER  XX. 

FUNERAL  OF  A  LIVE  MAN. 

ROM  day  to  day  Uncle  Jack  watched  the 
movement  of  the  sun  as  to  its  setting,  noted 
the  shortening  of  the  days,  the  browning  of 
the  leaves  upon  the  trees,  and  finally  their  falling 
to  the  earth. 

"Wai,  de  persimmons  is  erbout  right  now  an'  de 
possums  am  fat,  an*  I  s'pose  its  erbout  time  ter 
go." 

Securing  some  one  to  fill  his  place  for  a  short 
while,  Uncle  Jack  now  took  his  departure,  omit- 
ting to  state  to  any  one  where  he  was  going  or 
for  what  purpose. 

A  short  distance  from  the  side  of  the  roadway 
bisecting  Nelson  County  into  eastern  and  west- 
ern halves,  sitting  at  the  end  of  an  archway  sev- 
eral hundred  feet  long,  which  archway  was  made 
by  two  rows  of  well  developed  cedar  trees,  sat  a 
somewhat  large  country  farm-house.  Uncle  Jack 
with  some  difficulty  opened  the  large  farm  gate. 

"Times  shuah  doos  change,"  said  he,  regaining 
his  breath  after  his  effort.  "How  well  do  I  'mem- 
ber how  I  uster  fling  dat  gate  open  w'en  I  wuz 
er  lad." 

The  old  man  looked  wistfully  down  the  tree 
made  lane  towards  the  house  as  he  journeyed  in 
that  direction.  His  mind  was  on  the  spirits  of 


FUNERAL   OF  A  LIVE   MAN.  147 

the  departed  who  once  occupied  the  old  house 
but  were  now  gone  forever.  Arriving  at  the 
front  door  he  started  to  knock,  but  changed  his 
mind  and  went  around  to  the  rear. 

"I'll  go  in  at  de  back  door  ez  I  did  in  ole 
times." 

In  response  to  a  knock  on  the  rear  door  a  small 
boy,  followed  by  a  bevy  of  open-mouthed  children, 
alive  with  curiosity,  opened  the  door  and  admitted 
Uncle  Jack. 

"  Ton  my  soul  ef  it  ain't  old  Jack  Morris,"  said 
an  aged  woman,  sitting  near  the  fire  blazing  in 
the  open  fireplace,  who  had  adjusted  her  specta- 
cles and  lifted  her  pipe  from  her  mouth  in  order 
that  she  might  the  better  survey  the  new-comer. 

The  name  that  the  woman  called  brought  the 
whole  army  of  children  about  Uncle  Jack's  legs. 
In  the  home  of  his  Aunt  Melissa  Crutcher  and  her 
son  the  name  of  Jack  Morris  was  a  household 
word,  for  Jack  was  the  son  of  her  brother,  and 
as  a  youth  had  been  uniformly  kind  to  all  and 
was  dearly  beloved  by  all,  both  white  and  black. 

"Jack  Morris,  yer  mean  thing,  yer,  set  down 
dare  an'  let  me  look  at  yer,"  said  Aunt  Melissa. 

Uncle  Jack  did  as  he  was  bidden,  and  he  and 
Aunt  Melissa  were  soon  exchanging  reminiscences 
of  old  times. 

By  and  by  Horace  Crutcher,  Aunt  Melissa's  son, 
and  Uncle  Jack's  cousin,  who  was  now  the  owner 
of  the  old  plantation  on  which  Uncle  Jack  was  a 


148  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

slave,  came  in,  and  was  no  less  delighted  than  the 
others  at  the  presence  of  Uncle  Jack. 

"Wai,  yer  all  wants  ter  know  what  I'se  heah 
fur,  don't  yer?"  said  Uncle  Jack. 

"Yer  orter  be  heah  ter  lib  tell  yer  die,  Jack," 
said  Aunt  Melissa. 

"Wai,  Fse  come  ter  be  er  man  uv  some  'portance 
in  my  ole  days.  I'm  tole  by  some  whut  knows  dat 
dare  is  er  place  cut  out  in  der  hist'ries  fur  me 
an'  I  mus'  look  atter  dat  putty  soon.  But  I'se 
heah  now  ter  hab  er  good  ole  time  in  ev'ry  way, 
an*  den  ter  hab  my  funeril  preached." 

"Your  funeral  preached?"  asked  Horace,  Aunt 
Melissa's  son. 

"Yes,  dat  is  whut  I  wants.  I  wants  ter  hab  er 
good  ole-fashion  shout  at  de  meetin'  house;  I 
wants  er  fust-class  possum  dinnah  atter  er  all 
night  hunt  fur  de  possum,  an'  den,  at  er  time  w'en 
I  kin  hab  all  uv  my  frien's,  white  an'  cullud,  dat 
knowed  me  in  de  ole  times,  I  wants  my  funeril 
preached." 

At  first  it  was  thought  that  Uncle  Jack  was  jest- 
ing, but  it  was  finally  seen  that  he  was  in  earnest, 
and  plans  were  set  on  foot  to  humor  him  in  all  his 
requests.  The  Crutcher  boys  were  glad  to  lead 
him  out  one  moonlight  night  in  quest  of  the  pos- 
sums, and  they  and  Uncle  Jack  were  a  delighted 
set  when  at  daybreak  next  morning  they  returned 
with  the  coveted  animals.  Aunt  Melissa  Crutcher 
had  stepped  aside  some  years  since  for  her  daugh- 
ter-in-law as  a  cook,  but  in  this  instance  she  bade 


FUNERAL   OF  A  LIVE   MAN.  149 

her  step  aside  and  herself  cooked  the  possum  for 
Uncle  Jack. 

Sunday  came,  the  church  members  were  out 
in  force  and  engaged  in  covenant  meeting,  the 
telling  on  the  part  of  each  of  his  Christian  expe- 
rience and  determination.  Religious  fervor  ran 
high,  the  old  plantation  melodies  were  sung  with 
zest,  and  a  high  degree  of  emotion  was  generated. 
Uncle  Jack  wept  and  laughed  by  turns  from  sheer 
joy,  frequently  exclaiming,  "My  soul  is  habin' 
er  feast  uv  good  things." 

The  funeral  was  duly  announced,  and  on  the 
appointed  day  the  people,  white  and  colored, 
dropped  their  tasks  and  met  at  the  Negro  church, 
where  both  the  white  and  Negro  pastors  delivered 
eulogies  concerning  the  white-haired  Uncle  Jack, 
who  sat  with  bowed  head  in  a  corner  of  a  front 
seat. 

When  the  funeral  was  over  and  his  life  had  been 
duly  set  forth  to  the  hearers,  the  entire  audience 
passed  around  and  shook  Uncle  Jack  by  the  hand. 

When  Uncle  Jack  had  returned  to  Aunt  Me- 
lissa's from  the  church,  she  said: 

"Now,  Jack  Morris,  yer  air  'bout  ter  go  back 
ter  Belrose,  an*  I  wouldn't  lak  ter  die  thinkin'  dat 
Jack  had  turnt  ter  er  fool.  Now  'splain  ter  me 
dese  goin'  ons  dat  yer's  been  havin'  out  heah." 

"Wai,  Aunt  Merlissa,  ef  you  will  sen'  de  chillun 
out  I  will  'splain  things  ter  yer." 

Aunt  Melissa  did  as  suggested,  and  Uncle  Jack 
drew  near  so  that  he  would  not  have  to  talk  very 
loudly. 


150  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Yer  see,  Aunt  Merlissa,  my  way  and  yer  way 
uv  managin'  wid  de  white  folks  wuz  to  act  kin'  an' 
make  out  wid  de  bes'  dat  dey  seed  fit  ter  do.  I 
hez  fell  in  wid  some  youngsters  in  Belrose  dat 
wants  things  ter  move  'cordin'  ter  some  principull, 
an'  not  jes'  ez  er  notion  stracks  de  white  people. 
Dey  says  dat  de  white  people  hez  done  gone  an' 
disfrankshied  ill-littered  cullud  folks  'thout  dis- 
frankshieng  ill-littered  white  folks.  Dese  cullud 
young  uns  says  dat  ain't  right.  Dey  says  dat  ill- 
littered  white  folks  an*  ill-littered  cullud  folks 
ought  ter  hab  one  law  'cordin'  ter  de  constertu- 
tion. 

"Now  Fse  been  picked  out  ez  de  cullud  man  ter 
tes'  dat  law.  Tore  I  'gin  my  life  uv  buckin'  ergin 
er  law  uv  de  white  folks  I  jes'  wanted  ter  close  up 
de  life  I  had  been  livin',  squar'  an'  even.  Ef  I  had 
waited  till  I  bucked  de  law  de  white  folks  mout  not 
'uve  been  willin'  ter  say  all  dis  dey  done  said 
ovah  me  ter  day. 

"Yer  see,  dey  ain't  lak  us.  Wen  massa  rode 
erway  ter  de  war  an'  fit  ter  keep  me  in  slav'ry 
I  didun't  make  it  er  pussonul  mattah.  I  didun't 
lak  whut  he  did,  but  I  kep'  on  lakin'  him  jes'  de 
same.  I  hopes  de  white  folks  won't  git  mad  at  me 
fur  tryin'  ter  git  er  ekal  show  in  life  fur  a  cullud 
an'  er  white  boy.  But  ef  dey  doos  git  mad,  dey 
done  'spressed  deyself  'bout  my  charackter." 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE    BREAK. 

[OR  sometime  Miss  Letitia  Gilbreath  had  not 
been  altogether  pleased  with  the  amount  of 
attention  that  Baug  was  giving  to  Clotille. 
She  noted  that  his  visits  were  fewer  by  far  than 
what  they  had  been,  and  that  when  he  did 
come  his  stay  was  invariably  shorter  than  former- 
ly. She  observed  also  that  Baug  no  longer  accom- 
panied Clotille  to  public  affairs,  leaving  her  to  go 
with  some  girl  friend. 

Miss  Letitia  decided  to  constitute  herself  a  de- 
tective to  find  out  just  what  the  trouble  was. 
She  was  not  long  in  discovering  why  Baug  was 
not  oftener  at  Clotille's  house.  It  was  simply  be- 
cause he  was  giving  his  entire  attention  socially 
to  one  Miss  Eina  Rapona. 

When  Miss  Letitia  caught  sight  of  the  beautiful 
Eina,  her  heart  somewhat  sank  within  her.  She 
realized  that,  after  all,  there  was  a  possible  basis 
for  a  marked  affinity  between  people  of  a  similar 
mould,  and  that  the  small  fraction  of  the  blood  of 
the  colored  race  possessed  by  each  made  an  at- 
tachment between  Eina  and  Baug  more  probable, 
perhaps,  than  between  the  light  Baug  and  the 
dark  Clotille.  Against  most  girls  Clotille,  she  felt, 
had  the  advantage  of  a  large  prospective  fortune, 
but  she  discovered  that  Eina  was  also  a  girl  of 
wealth. 


152  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Miss  Letitia  tried  to  arouse  Clotille's  fears  of 
losing  Baug  that  she  might  bestir  herself  to  hold 
his  affections,  but  Clotille  was  only  too  happy  that 
Eina  had  him  in  tow  and  was  hauling  him  out 
of  her  way;  as  for  the  rest  of  her  problem  she 
was  now  convinced  that  with  Belrose  all  right, 
with  the  permanence  of  the  Belrose  movement  as- 
sured, with  unequal  disfranchisement  destined 
to  be  upset,  her  cousin  could  be  handled.  So, 
that  which  was  bringing  worry  to  Miss  Letitia 
was  bringing  happiness  to  Clotille. 

Unable  to  arouse  Clotille  to  action  in  her  own 
behalf,  Miss  Letitia  decided  to  take  up  the  cudgel 
herself  and  drive  Eina  from  the  field.  At  a  time 
when  Clotille  was  away  from  home  she  opened  her 
letter  box  and  purloined  what  she  regarded  as 
ample  ammunition  with  which  to  attack  Eina. 

Mounting  her  bicycle,  Miss  Letitia  rode  out  to 
where  she  had  learned  that  Eina  lived.  As  soon 
as  she  had  taken  a  seat  in  Eina's  parlor  she 
plunged  into  the  object  of  her  visit. 

"You  and  my  Clotille  are  fast  friends,  I  be- 
lieve?" said  Miss  Letitia. 

"We  surely  are,"  said  Eina,  her  face  aglow  with 
the  thought  of  the  mutual  love  between  herself  and 
Clotille. 

"Yes,  I  think  you  are.  I  know  that,  being  a 
friend,  you  would  not  have  her  live  and  die  a 
pauper,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

"Of  course  not.  I  would  do  all  in  my  power  to 
see  Clotille's  life  full  of  comfort,"  said  Eina. 


THE  BREAK.  153 

"I  felt  that  way  about  you.  And  I  knew  that 
the  harm  you  were  doing  Clotille  was  being  done 
because  you  did  not  understand  just  what  was 
taking  place." 

"Indeed,  you  speak  the  truth  when  you  say  that 
I  am  in  ignorance  concerning  any  form  of  injury 
that  I  am  doing  Clotille.  And  pray  please  be  frank 
and  quick.  It  pains  me  to  have  so  acted  at  any 
time  or  place  as  to  have  impressed  any  one  that 
Clotille's  interests  needed  protection  from  my  ag- 
gression," said  Eina,  rising  and  moving  toward 
Miss  Letitia  in  her  eagerness  to  catch  her  every 
word. 

"Well,  Clotille  stands  a  good  chance  of  being 
rich  some  day,  but  it  all  depends  upon  whom  she 
marries.  A  respectable  fortune  awaits  her  if  she 
marries  Baug  Peppers." 

"Who?"  shouted  Eina. 

"Baug  Peppers,"  slowly  repeated  Miss  Letitia. 

Eina's  head  grew  dizzy,  a  weakness  seized  every 
muscle  of  her  frame,  and  she  staggered  to  the 
nearest  chair  and  fell  into  it.  Up  to  that  moment 
she  had  never  in  her  life  known  what  the  depth 
of  love  was  nor  realized  how  madly  she  was  in 
love  with  Peppers.  Her  throat  was  dry,  her  lips 
parched  and  her  frame  all  a  quiver. 

"Yes,"  continued  Miss  Letitia,  "Baug  and  Clo- 
tille have  been  picked  out  for  each  other  for  years 
and  years." 

"She  did  not  tell  me,  she  did  not  tell  me,"  Eina 
at  last  found  strength  to  say. 


154  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Well,  Clotille  was  always  backwards  about  her 
rights ;  but  I  am  telling  you." 

"Conroe?" 

"I'll  see  her  in  her  grave  before  I'll  let  her 
marry  that  fellow,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

"Does  she  love  Baug?"  asked  Eina. 

"They  love  each  other,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

Eina  now  rallied  and  said:  "Miss  Gilbreath, 
Clotille  is  my  friend,  my  only,  my  dearest  friend. 
If  she  had  loved  Baug  Peppers  she  would  have  let 
me  know.  You  are  in  error,  somehow.  Clotille 
would  not;  Clotille,  Clotille  could  not  play  me 
false." 

Miss  Letitia  now  unfolded  a  little  package 
which  she  had  kept  in  her  hand,  saying,  "You 
know  Clotille's  handwriting.  Read  this  letter,  will 
you?  Notice  the  date,  too,  won't  you?" 

Eina  took  the  letter  into  her  trembling  hands 
and  saw  at  once  that  it  was  unmistakably  written 
in  Clotille's  hand. 

It  was  addressed  to  "My  own  dear  Baug," 
breathed  throughout  the  most  fervent  love,  and 
was  evidently  written  in  response  to  a  letter  of 
the  same  tenor  that  Clotille  had  received.  There 
at  the  close  of  the  letter  were  penned  these  sig- 
nificant words : 

"Though  our  ambitions  may  cause  us  to  not  be 
seen  in  each  other's  company,  you  know  me  and 
I  know  you.  You  are  my  Baug  and  I  know  noth- 
ing in  all  the  world  other  than  to  subscribe  myself 
here  and  hereafter,  your  CLOTILLE." 


THE  BREAK.  155 

Eina's  mind  now  flashed  back  to  Baug's  stand- 
ing on  Broadway  and  Seventh  Avenue  the  day  of 
her  arrival,  to  Clotille's  significant  laugh.  It  all 
now  looked  to  her  to  be  a  black,  black  conspiracy 
to  foster  some  secret  ambition  that  Baug  and  Clo- 
tille  cherished,  for  the  attainment  of  which  she 
had  apparently  been  made  a  tool. 

"Brood  of  vipers,  I  drive  you  from  my  heart," 
said  Eina. 

"Woman,  please  leave  my  house.  Never  fear 
that  I  shall  stand  between  Clotille  and  that  man. 
Please  go,"  cried  Eina. 

Miss  Letitia  arose  to  leave,  and  on  departing, 
glanced  a  last  time  into  Eina's  face.  Never  in  all 
her  life  had  she  seen  such  a  picture  of  woe  as  she 
now  left  behind  her,  but  it  moved  her  not. 

Eina  collapsed  the  moment  Miss  Letitia  left, 
and  for  a  long  while  lay  prone  on  the  floor. 
At  length  she  crawled  to  her  desk  and  penned  the 
following  note  to  Baug : 

"Baug  Peppers :  The  engagement  for  this  even- 
ing is  off.  Please  do  not  ever  again  call  at  my 
house.  EINA  RAPONA." 

Having  dispatched  this  note,  Eina,  in  an  aim- 
less manner,  wandered  from  room  to  room  in  her 
cottage,  alternately  wringing  her  hands  and  hold- 
ing them  to  her  throbbing  temples. 

"Is  life  worth  living?" 

Such  was  the  question  that  the  sad,  torn  heart 
of  Eina  now  asked  over  and  over  again. 

"I  was  young  and  wealthy  and  the  world  called 
me  beautiful." 


156  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"I  lived  in  Boston  and  no  door  was  closed  in  my 
face.  I  met  a  colored  girl,  and  the  colored  blood 
in  me  called  out  unto  her,  and  we  became  friends." 

*  *     *     * 

"For  her  sake  I  left  my  home,  came  to  the  land 
of  the  great  shadow,  the  land  of  the  great  shadow, 
the  land  of  the  great  shadow,  and  cast  my  lot 

with  her." 

*  *     *     * 

"Her  burdens  were  my  burdens,  and  I  threw 
my  soul  into  the  work  of  clearing  the  pathway 
of  life  for  her.  She  deliberately  interests  me  in 
a  man  with  whom  she  was  herself  in  love,  while 
pretending  to  love  another." 

*  *     *     * 

"She  puts  near  me  a  trusted  servant  who  would 
be  sure  to  bring  this  man  into  my  life.  I  can  see 
it  all  now,  all!  I  meet  him,  I  work  with  him, 
I — I — I — well,  here  I  am,  a  broken-hearted  girl. 
Faith — in — humanity  gone,  gone ;  all  gone." 

*  *     *     * 

"What  is  there  in  life  when  the  heart  is  bleak? 
Money  I  have,  but  what  is  that  as  a  solace  to  the 

spirit?" 

*  *     *     * 

"The  world  is  large,  but  what  of  it  if  your 
heart  is  chained  to  the  one  spot?" 

*  *     *     * 

"I  am  young  yet,  but  more  is  the  pity,  for  the 
longer  will  I  have  this  load  to  carry.  Oh  life, 


THE  BREAK.  157 

what  are  you  ?    Just  as  we  reach  out  our  hands  to 
clutch  you,  you  go." 

*  *     *     * 

"What  is  the  moon  that  we  call  so  beautiful? 
A  dried-up  land.  What  is  the  sun?  A  ball  of  fire 
that  we  dare  not  approach." 

*  *     *     * 

"Where  are  our  ancestors?    In  us,  for  we  eat 

their  dust." 

*  *     *     * 

"What  was  the  fate  of  the  one  true  man  that 
came  into  the  world?  Crucified." 

*  *     *     * 

"Whence  came  I?    Who  knoweth?" 

*  *     *     * 

"Whither  goeth  man  after  death?    Who  hath 

returned  to  tell?" 

*  *     *     * 

"Is  life  worth  living?    Is  death  any  better?" 

*  *     *     * 

"The  path — of — glory — leads  but — to — the 
grave." 


CHAPTER  XXII. 
LIGHT  COMES. 

HEN  Baug  Peppers  received  that  little  note, 
unmistakably  penned  by  Eina,  he  rushed 
pellmell  to  a  livery  stable,  called  for  and 
hired  the  fastest  horse  therein,  and  went  dashing 
toward  Eina's  home  as  fast  as  the  fleet  animal 
could  carry  him.  When,  at  the  end  of  what  had 
seemed  to  be  an  age,  he  came  to  Eina's  house,  he 
found  the  blinds  closed,  the  doors  barred  and  no 
one  to  respond  to  his  repeated  knockings. 

Finding  all  efforts  to  get  in  touch  with  Eina 
futile,  Baug  rushed  around  the  house  to  the  stable 
in  quest  of  Uncle  Jack. 

He  read  the  note  to  Uncle  Jack  and  asked  him 
what  on  earth  could  possibly  be  the  trouble. 

"Wai,  I  been  'spectin'  jes'  dis,"  said  Uncle  Jack, 
deliberately. 

"Expecting  it?"  roared  Baug. 

"Expecting  Miss  Rapona  to  deny  me  the  privi- 
lege of  seeing  her?  Why,  her  request  is  just  about 
as  reasonable  as  though  she  asked  me  not  to 
breathe!  And  you  have  been  expecting  it?" 
stormed  Baug. 

"Be  ca'm,  Baug;  be  ca'm  an'  heah  me.  Be  ca'm ! 
Beca'm!" 

"Uncle,  if  you  are  going  to  talk,  please  talk  in 
keeping  with  the  fitness  of  things.  Don't,  don't 


LIGHT  COMES.  159 

say  be  ca'm.  There  is  a  far  more  appropriate  be 
that  could  be  said  by  a  less  devout  man  that  would 
better  fit  this  occasion — no,  no,  that  thought  is 
wicked,  and  1  need  heaven's  help  right  now,"  said 
Baug. 

"Yer  see,  Baug,  de  lady  keers  fur  yer." 

"Uncle  Jack,  dear  Uncle  Jack,  I  love  you,  but 
you  lie.  You  say  7  see  that  the  lady  cares  for  me. 
That  is  exactly  what  I  don't  see." 

"Baug,  lak  my  white  folks,  I  doan'  take  de  lie 
f  rum  nobody,  but  bein's  yer  is  crazy,  I'll  take  it  ter 
day.  Yer  'minds  me  uv — " 

"Uncle  Jack,  I'll  murder  you  on  the  spot — no, 
I  love  you  too  much  for  that,  but  I  will  say  I  will 
never  forgive  you  if  you  try  to  joke  me  now," 
said  Baug,  tramping  around  impatiently,  his  eye 
roving  about  the  doors  and  windows  of  Eina's 
home,  hoping  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  her. 

"Yer  see,  Baug,  de  lady  hez  come  ter  de  conclu- 
sion dat  she  mus'  know  mo'  'bout  yer  'fo'  proceed- 
in'  furder  wid  yer.  Wen  er  'oman  takes  dat  co'se 
she's  gittin'  mighty  deep  in  love.  Things  air  putty 
bright  fur  yer,  old  boy,  putty  bright." 

"If  things  are  bright  now,  I  hope  to  heaven  to 
never,  never  see  them  dark,"  said  Baug. 

"Yer  see,  findin'  dat  she  laks  yer,  she  mus'  now 
wait  'till  she  kin  git  yer  pedigrees,  kin  fin'  out 
whar  yer  sprung  frum,"  said  Uncle  Jack. 

"Oh,  my  stars !  Then  I  am  gone !  Who  on  earth 
knows  where  I  came  from?  That  has  been  the 
one  shadow  on  my  soul.  I  can't  blame  the  girl 


160  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

if  that's  the  case.  How  do  I  know  but  what  my 
father  was  hanged?  Oh,  I  am  done  forever," 
said  Baug,  growing  even  more  alarmed,  if  that 
be  possible,  and  ploughing  his  hand  through  his 
hair  frantically. 

"But  now  I  may  be  barkin'  up  de  wrong  tree, 
sumpin'  else  maybe  de  mattah;  yer  had  bettah 
go  see  Miss  Clotille,  bettah  see  her,"  said  Uncle 
Jack,  gravely. 

Baug  acted  on  the  suggestion,  and  was  soon 
on  the  way  to  Clotille's  house. 

When  the  news  of  Eina's  attitude  toward  Baug 
reached  Clotille  through  the  latter,  Clotille  was 
both  amazed  and  alarmed. 

Clotille  and  Baug  now  gave  earnest  thought  to 
the  devising  of  some  plan  for  finding  out  at  once 
what  was  the  cause  of  all  the  trouble.  They  were 
engaged  in  an  earnest  whispered  conversation, 
and  Miss  Letitia  was  sure  that  they  were  at  last 
planning  for  their  wedding. 

Feeling  that  there  was  danger  in  delay,  Miss 
Letitia  concluded  to  help  bring  matters  to  a 
head  that  very  day. 

Entering  the  parlor  where  Baug  and  Clotille 
were,  she  said: 

"Children,  it  rejoices  my  heart  to  see  you  two 
so  loving." 

Clotille  looked  up  to  see  if  there  were  any  indi- 
cations of  her  cousin's  losing  her  mind. 

"Yes,  I  think  you  all  were  born  for  each  other, 
Baug  handsome  and  intelligent,  Clotille  pretty, 


LIGHT  COMES.  161 

talented  and  cultured,  and  in  sight  and  in  reach 
of  a  great  fortune  whenever  she  fulfills  the  con- 
ditions." 

"Oh,  Cousin  Letitia,  that  is  horrid,  horrid! 
Pray  what  on  earth  is  the  matter?"  said  Clotille. 

"No,  I  am  going  to  speak  my  mind  to-day.  The 
reason  things  came  so  near  going  wrong  was 
because  I  kept  my  mouth  closed  so  long.  Young 
people  need  to  be  guided.  You  two  would  not 
have  been  together  so  long  and  lovingly  to-day  if 
I  had  not  knocked  the  other  one  oif  of  the  track. 
I  did  not  want  to  do  it,  but  she  had  no  right  to 
come  between  you  two  and  upset  all  our  plans." 

A  faint  glimmer  of  the  true  state  of  affairs 
dawned  upon  Clotille  and  Baug,  and  they  both 
stood  up  looking  eagerly  to  Miss  Letitia  for  more 
light. 

"Now  that  looks  nice.  You  all  will  make  a  nice 
couple,  a  light  one  and  a  dark  one.  Now  let  the 
other  lady  get  a  dark  one,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

"To — I'll  cut  any  dark  one's  throat — I  don't 
understand,"  said  Baug. 

"I  have  just  told  her  that  you  and  Clotille  were 
picked  out  for  each  other  a  long  time  ago." 

"Mercy!  Mercy!"  screamed  Clotille. 

"She  was  hard  to  shake,  but  I  shook  her.  I  found 
some  letters  that  Baug  returned  to  you  when  you 
all  evidently  broke  up,  and  I  showed  her  one  of 
them.  That  letter  settled  things  and  she  will 
never  give  you  two  any  more  trouble.  You  young 
people  must  watch  these  designing  women  now 


162  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

and  hereafter  else  they  will  ruin  you,"  continued 
Miss  Letitia. 

"Oh,  woman,  in  what  a  perfidious  light  you 
have  placed  me.  Now  let  me  tell  you  something. 
For  years  I  have  loved  a  dark  man,  Conroe  Dris- 
coll.  Because  you  have  fought  with  such  bitter- 
ness my  marrying  a  dark  man,  he  has  used 
Baug's  name  in  his  correspondence  so  that  a  dis- 
covery of  his  letters  on  your  part  would  not  give 
us  trouble.  When  Conroe  grew  somewhat  hope- 
less and  didn't  care  whether  he  lived  or  died  on 
the  football  field,  he  returned  to  me  my  letters  to 
him  that  they  might  not  fall  into  other  hands  in 
case  of  his  death.  It  was  evidently  a  letter  of 
mine  to  Conroe  which  you  found  and  used." 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

QUITE  UNEXPECTED. 

AUG  stood  listening  to  what  Clotille  and 
Miss  Letitia  had  to  say  long  enough  to  catch 
a  clear  idea  of  what  caused  his  trouble,  and 
then,  with  all  the  speed  at  his  command,  has- 
tened to  his  buggy  and  was  soon  at  Eina's  home 
again,  but  his  success  at  getting  a  hearing  was  no 
better  this  time  than  on  his  previous  visit,  and  he 
drove  back  dejectedly  to  Clotille,  who  was  still 
weeping  bitterly  over  the  false  light  in  which  her 
cousin  had  put  her. 

"Come,  Baug,  I  will  settle  it  all,"  said  Clotille, 
rising  and  leading  the  way  to  the  buggy. 

"Drive  me  quickly  to  Conroe's  office." 

Baug  obeyed,  not  knowing,  however,  what  was 
Clotille's  plan. 

When  they  arrived  at  the  office  Clotille  said: 
"Conroe,  go  at  once  and  get  a  marriage  license." 

Conroe  hesitated  an  instant  and  looked  into 
Baug's  face  for  an  explanation. 

"Yes,  for  God's  sake,  go,  and  go  quickly!" 

Conroe  not  daring  to  hope  that  the  sun  had 
come  to  shine  in  his  door,  took  it  for  granted  that 
it  was  Baug  who  was  to  be  thus  favored  of  heaven. 
Therefore  upon  arriving  at  the  office  where  li- 
censes were  issued,  he  procured  a  license  for  Baug 
Peppers  and  Eina  Rapona.  He  returned  to  his 


164  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

office,  where  he  found  that  a  justice  of  the  peace, 
summoned  during  his  absence,  awaited  to  perform 
a  marriage  ceremony. 

Conroe  handed  the  license  to  the  justice,  and 
Clotille  said,  "We  are  ready." 

"But  where,  where — er — I  don't  understand. 
Where  is  Miss  Rapona?"  asked  Conroe. 

"You  fool  you,  you  and  Clotille  are  to  marry, 
Conroe,"  shouted  Baug. 

Slowly  it  percolated  through  Conroe's  brain  that 
he  and  not  Baug  was  the  fortunate  mortal  and 
out  of  the  office  he  dashed  for  another  license. 
In  the  meantime  Baug  made  himself  the  possessor 
of  the  license  that  Conroe  had  mistakenly  pro- 
cured, and  surreptitiously  slipped  the  paper  into 
his  pocket,  not  knowing  what  strange  turn  events 
might  take  that  day,  and  desiring  to  be  prepared 
not  only  for  the  worst  but  also  for  the  best. 

It  was  remarkable  how  much  quicker  Conroe 
made  the  second  trip  to  the  license  office  than  he 
did  the  first,  although  he  would  have  testified  on 
oath  that  his  first  trip  was  made  with  as  much 
speed  as  was  consistent  with  dignity.  But  you  see 
in  his  own  case  he  abandoned  all  considerations  of 
dignity. 

Soon  Conroe  Driscoll  and  Clotille  Strange  were 
proclaimed  man  and  wife. 

"Let  us  all  go  to  see  Eina  now  and  take  this 
justice  along  as  a  witness,"  said  Clotille. 

The  suggestion  was  accepted  and  the  party  pro- 
cured a  carriage,  which  ere  long  pulled  up  to 


QUITE  UNEXPECTED.  165 

Eina's  gate.  Clotille  rushed  to  the  house,  leaving 
the  others  behind,  hoping  to  prepare  the  way  for 
them.  It  happened  that  she  had  retained  the  key 
to  Eina's  door  that  she  had  when  in  charge  of  the 
preparations  for  Eina's  coming,  and  had  been 
thoughtful  enough  to  get  it  before  leaving  home. 
She  opened  the  door  and  rushed  in.  But  Eina 
had  gone! 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

BAUG  SEARCHING  FOR  EINA. 

ONROE  DRISCOLL  and  Baug  Peppers  are 
in  absolute  disagreement  as  to  the  character 
of  the  first  night  after  Eina's  disappear- 
ance. Happy  in  the  possession  of  Clotille  as  his 
bride,  Conroe  positively  asserts  that  the  world  was 
never  more  beautiful  than  on  that  night.  Accord- 
ing to  his  account,  the  moon  was  full  and  in  jovial 
mood.  The  clouds  to  vex  her  reign  were  thin  and 
few,  and  even  they,  in  passing  beneath  her  throne, 
were  tinged  with  glory  and  made  resplendent  in 
the  heavens.  The  milky  way,  like  a  diamond 
studded  bridal  veil,  hovered  near  the  moon  as  if  to 
be  in  easy  reach  of  this  beautiful  woman  of  the 
night  traveling  toward  some  consort  divine.  The 
stars,  both  great  and  small,  twinkled  their  mer- 
riest as  if  in  an  effort  to  keep  pace  with  their 
happy  queen.  Now  this  is  Conroe's  version  of 
that  night,  set  forth  according  to  the  emotions  that 
surged  within  him  as  he  stood  out  in  the  open  and 
thanked  the  far  oif  eternal  forces  which,  despite 
all  obstacles,  had  swept  Clotille  into  his  arms. 

As  for  Baug,  he  vehemently  asserts  that  the 
light  of  the  moon  was  wearisome  to  the  soul; 
that  the  winking  and  blinking  stars  were  but  so 
many  tiny  mockers  of  his  grief ;  that  all  of  nature's 
antics  on  that  night  were  out  of  keeping  with  the 


BAUG  SEARCHING  FOR  EINA.  167 

eternal  fitness  of  things  save  where  the  dark 
shadows  and  sullen  corners  were  to  be  found, 
where  the  light  of  the  moon  and  stars  came  not. 

It  is  perhaps  the  discontented  man  of  the  world 
that  bears  watching,  so  we  shall  for  the  time 
being  excuse  ourselves  from  the  company  of  the 
happy  Conroe  and  follow  the  meanderings  of  the 
rather  desperate  Baug. 

Without  set  purpose,  Baug  left  his  gate  that 
night  and  began  to  walk  aimlessly  through  the 
streets  of  Belrose.  Passing  through  the  heart 
of  the  city,  moving  in  an  opposite  direction  to 
that  in  which  Eina  had  lived,  Baug  walked  far 
beyond  the  corporate  limits,  his  journey  ings 
bringing  him  to  the  Ambrose  River,  leisurely 
flowing  along,  fresh  from  lapping  the  shores  of 
Belrose. 

Upon  the  bridge  spanning  the  river,  Baug  looked 
down  upon  the  sombre  face  of  the  waters,  then 
toward  the  gloom-steeped  trees  lining  the  banks 
of  the  stream,  then  toward  the  hills  that  rose  in 
the  distance  and  seemed  to  bank  themselves 
against  the  sky.  Returning  his  gaze  to  the  wa- 
ters, Baug  said: 

"Dark,  wooing  waters,  one  day  your  smileless 
face  may  draw  me  to  your  bosom,  but  not  now, 
not  now !  I  have  a  great  battle  to  fight — and  win. 
To  live,  to  live,  and  not  to  die,  is  my  task." 

When,  far  across  the  river,  Baug,  following 
the  roadway,  reached  the  crest  of  a  high  hill  and 
saw  near  the  roadside  a  huge  boulder,  he  paused, 


168  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

climbed  upon  the  rock  and  sat  with  his  face  to- 
ward sleeping  Belrose,  determined  to  abide  there 
until  he  had  worked  out  some  satisfactory  plan 
for  searching  for  the  missing  Eina. 

What  made  the  situation  doubly  agonizing  to 
Baug  was  the  fact  that  Eina,  according  to  Uncle 
Jack,  had  resolved  to  die  to  the  Negro  race. 

"If  that  girl  passes  for  white,  what  a  terrible 
situation  confronts  me !  As  a  colored  man  I  never 
attend  their  churches,  theatres,  or  social  gather- 
ings, nor  they  ours.  We  are  two  distinct  worlds 
meeting  in  business  relations  through  the  day 
and  retiring  within  our  respective  racial  castles 
at  night.  If  on  the  streets  of  Belrose  I  happen 
to  meet  Eina  and  accost  her  socially  while  she  is 
passing  for  white,  any  crowd  of  white  Belrosans 
seeing  it  will  be  ready  to  mob  me.  Terrible,  ter- 
rible, terrible  predicament,"  mused  Baug. 

"If  I  should  pass  for  white  and  make  the  search 
for  Eina  in  the  social  circles  of  the  whites,  and 
perchance  should  be  discovered,  death  would  as- 
suredly await  me,  though  my  heart  would  only  be 
in  quest  of  Eina,"  he  continued.  Then  the  thought 
occurred  to  him  that  his  face  of  mystery,  having 
always  attracted  the  marked  attention  of  all  who 
had  met  him,  would  perhaps  be  in  the  way  of  such 
a  course. 

As  a  sort  of  rest  from  the  strain  of  trying  to 
decide  upon  a  line  of  procedure,  Baug's  mind  now 
reverted  to  his  various  talks  with  Eina,  and  there 
came  back  to  him  to  both  gladden  and  to  further 


BAUG  SEARCHING  FOB  EINA.  169 

sadden  his  heart,  Eina's  sunny  smile,  the  glory 
of  her  eyes,  the  memory  of  the  thrill  of  her  low, 
sweet  tones,  the  noble  sentiments  to  which  from 
time  to  time  she  had  given  voice. 

As  Baug  sat  thus  meditating  on  his  seemingly 
hopeless  plight,  glancing  down  the  road  he  saw 
in  the  moonlight  the  dim  outline  of  a  human 
form.  It  proved  to  be  that  of  the  ever-faithful 
Uncle  Jack,  who,  knowing  the  intensity  of  Baug's 
attachment  for  Eina,  had  felt  that  it  was  at  least 
well  to  keep  in  touch  with  him. 

From  the  moment  that  he  had  caught  sight  of 
the  look  of  desperation  that  overspread  Baug's 
face  when  he  had  intimated  to  him  Eina's  deter- 
mination to  withdraw  from  the  Negro  race,  Uncle 
Jack  had  been  on  Baug's  trail,  managing,  how- 
ever, to  keep  at  such  a  distance  as  to  be  unob- 
served. During  the  time  that  he  had  been  follow- 
ing Baug,  Uncle  Jack  had  been  canvassing  in  his 
mind  a  matter  of  deep  moment.  He  knew  that 
the  ruling  desire  of  Baug's  heart  now  was  to  find 
Eina,  and  he  felt  able  to  indicate  the  manner  in 
which  this  might  be  done,  but  the  carrying  out  of 
his  plan  might  jeopardize  his  own  life.  In  view 
of  this  possible  danger  he  had  thought  long  and 
deeply. 

Having  at  last  reached  a  conclusion,  Uncle  Jack 
emerged  from  the  shadow  of  the  trees  by  the  road- 
side where  he  had  stopped  to  rest  and  keep  watch 
on  Baug.  As  he  drew  near,  Baug,  whose  soul 
just  now  craved  solitude,  for  the  first  time 


170  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

in  life  was  not  glad  to  see  him.  Many  a  time  had 
Baug  in  days  gone  by  sought  Uncle  Jack  in  order 
that  he  might  dispel  feelings  of  gloom  by  drawing 
on  his  rich  store  of  humorous  experiences,  but  at 
this  time  he  felt  more  like  listening  to  a  funeral 
discourse  than  to  a  joke.  Uncle  Jack,  however, 
very  soon  turned  Baug's  distaste  at  his  presence 
into  unbounded  joy. 

In  a  tone  that  smacked  of  impatience,  Baug 
said:  "Uncle  Jack,  what  on  earth  has  brought 
you  way  out  here  at  such  a  time  as  this.  A  man 
of  your  years  should  take  better  care  of  himself." 

Uncle  Jack,  knowing  Baug's  frame  of  mind, 
elected  to  ignore  the  tone  of  irritation,  and  said  in 
an  humble  manner: 

"Baug,  Miss  Eina  is  done  gone,  ez  yer  knows, 
an*  I  wants  ter  fin*  her.  'Cordin'  ter  whut  I 
learns  she  lef  under  er  misunderstandin'." 

"Yes,  a  very,  very  gross  one,  Uncle  Jack.  The 
idea  of  her  supposing  that  Clotille  was  in  love  with 
rue  and  I  with  Clotille!" 

"Now,  I  wants  ter  fin'  Miss  Eina  an'  git  all  dis 
cleared  up." 

"Of  course  everybody  wants  to  find  her,  Uncle 
Jack.  But  how  in  the  name  of  common  sense  is 
that  to  be  dene  is  the  question?" 

"Now  dat  is  whut  I  wants  ter  talk  wid  yer 
erbout.  I  got  er  plan  dat  will  shuah  bring  her  ter 
whar  yer  kin  'splain  matters  ter  her." 

Baug  leaped  down  from  his  boulder,  slapped 
Uncle  Jack  upon  the  shoulder  and  said :  "Uncle 


BAUG  SEARCHING  FOR  EINA.  171 

Jack,  you  are  the  very  man  I'm  looking  for.  Upon 
my  word  and  honor  I  would  rather  have  your  com- 
pany than  to  own  a  South  African  gold  mine. 
Now  out  with  your  plan,  Uncle  Jack." 

"Did  yer  evah  talk  ter  Miss  Eina  'bout  de  cullud 
folks  bein'  disf rankshied  ?" 

Baug's  mind  became  very  alert  and  very  exact, 
very  much  disposed  to  dwell  on  details.  How 
bafflled  love  does  sharpen  one's  wits !  Said  he : 

"Oh,  yes,  many  a  time.  Let's  see.  I  think  I  can 
almost  recall  the  words  in  which  I  expressed  my 
views  on  that.  I  said  to  her  something  like  this : 
Governments  have  a  psychological  influence  over 
their  citizens.  The  reverence  which  makes  a  gov- 
ernment possible  writes  itself  large  upon  the  citi- 
zen's mind,  who  often  unconsciously  seeks  to  re- 
flect in  himself  the  spirit  of  his  State.  Wherever, 
therefore,  you  find  a  State  discriminating  against 
a  given  class,  the  citizen  assumes  a  like  attitude 
toward  the  object  of  discrimination  in  an  effort  to 
reflect  the  attitude  of  the  State.  In  the  very 
nature  of  things,  therefore,  matters,  where  State 
action  is  one  great  fountain  of  psychological 
poison,  must  grow  worse  instead  of  better.  Yes, 
State  discrimination  is  a  virus  calculated  to  carry 
unfairness  into  the  very  marrow  and  bone  of  the 
nation." 

"Wai,  whut  yer  said  made  er  deep  'pression  on 
her  mind  an'  she  got  all  wrapped  up  in  takin'  dat 
qusshun  ter  de  S'preme  Coat.  She  wuz  plannin' 
er  case  'thout  yer  knowin'  it,  ter  tes'  de  law.  Yer 


172  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

wuz  ter  be  kep'  out  uv  de  plannin'  so  dat  yer 
woulden't  be  'rested  for  cunspeericy,  fur  she 
wanted  yer  fur  de  lawyer." 

"Oh,  bosh,  Uncle  Jack!  I  thought  you  had  a 
plan  for  finding  Miss  Eina?" 

"Jes'  hole  yer  hosses,  Mistah  Baug;  jes'  hole  yer 
hosses,  an*  doan'  be  so  ready  ter  fly  off,"  said 
Uncle  Jack,  reassuringly. 

"Miss  Eina  kinder  thort  yer  wuz  er  great  man 
an'  she  wanted  ter  heah  yer  argify  dat  case  in  de 
Supreme  Coat.  She  said  dat  ef  dat  case  wuz  evah 
called  up  dare  she  would  be  dare  ef  she  lived. 
She  said  dat  ef  she  wuz  dead  an*  dare  wuz  enny 
such  thing  ez  er  dead  pusson  visitin'  'bout,  she 
would  shuah  be  dare.  Now,  Baug,  Uncle  Jack 
knows  folks — white  folks,  cullud  folks  an*  de 
mixed  folks.  Uncle  Jack  knows  'um.  I  tell  yer 
shuah  ez  yer  is  bawn,  ef  yer  git  er  case  in  de 
S'preme  Coat  to  tes'  dem  disfrankshieing  laws, 
Miss  Eina  will  be  on  han'  ter  hear  yer  argify. 
Baug,  I  tell  yer  I  knows." 

"Now,  Uncle  Jack,"  said  Baug,  enthusiastically, 
"you  go  ahead  with  that  test  case,  you  hear.  Do 
everything  just  as  you  were  told  by  Miss  Eina. 
Keep  me  way  out  of  the  thing,  if  telling  me  will 
keep  me  from  being  the  attorney.  Do  you  hear, 
Uncle  Jack?" 

With  this  line  of  procedure  agreed  upon,  the 
two  men  sat  throughout  the  night  chatting,  Baug 
listening  with  hungry  ears  to  little  scraps  of  re- 
marks that  Eina  had  from  time  to  time  let  fall 


BAUG  SEARCHING  FOR  EINA.  173 

in  Uncle  Jack's  presence,  remarks  indicating  that 
she  took  more  than  a  passing  interest  in  him. 
More  than  once  Uncle  Jack  was  in  imminent  dan- 
ger of  being  hugged  by  Baug  over  some  remark 
of  Eina's  that  he  reported. 

By  and  by  the  moon  went  down,  the  east  took 
on  its  golden  flush  and  the  hazy  light  of  morning 
appeared.  Vehicles  began  to  pass,  and  when  one 
came  along  that  afforded  an  opportunity  for  a 
ride,  Baug  accosted  the  driver,  who  readily  con- 
sented to  convey  him  and  Uncle  Jack  to  Belrose. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 
CLEAR  SAILING. 

|HILE  Baug  was  fully  resolved  upon  carrying 
out  the  plan  that  Uncle  Jack  had  laid  be- 
fore him  there  was  the  possibility  of  ill 
effects  that  he  desired  if  possible  to  avoid.  He 
realized  fully  that  the  good  will  of  his  Southern 
white  neighbors  was  a  consideration  second  only 
in  importance  to  having  it  agreed  that  the  race 
with  which  he  was  identified  was  to  be  dealt  with 
according  to  the  fundamental  principle  of  the 
government,  equality  before  the  law.  He  had 
inaugurated  in  Belrose  the  harmonious  working 
together  of  the  white  and  colored  people  in  local 
political  matters,  and  he  would  have  regretted 
much  anything  that  rendered  him  personally  un- 
acceptable as  an  ambassador  of  peace. 

Of  course  he  had  all  along  been  deeply  con- 
cerned about  the  fundamental  rights  of  his  peo- 
ple, was  anxious  to  have  the  point  that  had  so 
greatly  interested  Eina  settled,  but  he  had  hither- 
to hoped  that  that  possibly  irritating  duty  might 
fall  to  some  other  hands;  had  hoped  this,  not  out 
of  cowardice,  but  from  a  desire  to  reserve  himself 
for  a  task  of  equal  importance,  that  of  friendly 
adjustment. 

Moreover  Baug  felt  that  an  attempt  on  his  part 
to  overthrow  even  by  peaceable  means  what  he 


CLEAR   SAILING.  175 

deemed  the  unequal  suffrage  system  might  jeop- 
ardize his  life.  As  he  desired  above  all  things 
just  now  to  live  to  see  Eina  again  he  thought  it 
wise  to  sound  Molair  that  he  might  indirectly 
gain  an  idea  as  to  whether  it  was  best  to  prose- 
cute his  work  in  this  direction  from  some  point  in 
the  North  or  from  Belrose. 

Calling  upon  Mr.  Molair  at  his  home  after  busi- 
ness hours  were  over,  Baug  was  ushered  into  his 
library.  When  Molair  entered  he  greeted  Baug 
with  a  smile  and  a  warm  clasp  of  the  hand. 

Beginning  the  conversation,  Baug  said: 

"Mr.  Molair,  I  regard  you  as  typical  of  the  best 
that  Southern  white  civilization  has  produced,  and 
through  you  I  want  to-day  to  hear  the  voice  of  the 
best  South." 

"I  thank  you  for  your  compliment,  but  I  dare 
not  claim  to  be  the  best  of  the  South,  which,  South- 
erner-like, I  put  ahead  of  the  world.  You  see 
the  heights  are  too  dizzy,"  replied  Molair. 

Passing  by  Molair's  parrying  of  his  compliment, 
Baug  said:  "I  am  more  than  anxious  that  the 
political  war  along  racial  lines  between  your  and 
my  people  should  come  to  a  close,  and  would  re- 
gret the  necessity  of  any  step  that  would  put  us 
more  at  variance.  But  the  vital  needs  of  the  col- 
ored people,  with  which  needs  my  own  personal 
fortunes  have  become  inextricably  involved,  de- 
mand that  I  make  an  effect  to  have  our  Supreme 
Court  upset  such  laws  as  do  not  bear  equally  upon 
the  people  of  both  races.  In  the  event  that  I  pur- 


176  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

sue  this  course  what  do  you  think  would  be  the 
attitude  of  the  Southern  white  people  of  your 
type?" 

Molair  smiled  and  cast  his  eyes  around  the 
walls  of  the  library.  Arising,  he  went  to  the  end 
of  a  row  of  oil  paintings  of  persons,  and  said  to 
Baug:  "Come  and  look."  He  lead  Baug  from 
painting  to  painting  in  that  room,  then  escorted 
him  to  other  rooms  where  there  were  paintings. 
When  the  tour  of  inspection  was  over,  he  said: 
"You  have  just  seen  the  likenesses  of  Molairs  for 
centuries  back.  So  far  as  I  am  concerned,  if  with 
a  thousand  years  of  civilization  back  of  him  a  Mo- 
lair  cannot  hold  his  own  in  an  equal  contest  with 
the  grandson  of  an  uncivilized  African,  I  say  let 
him  go  to  the  wall.  I  scorn  the  idea  of  a  weak  test 
for  a  white  man  and  a  severe  one  for  the  Negro. 
It  is  a  rank  injustice  to  the  white  man.  When  you1 
remember  that  mother  nature  coddled,  made  life 
easy  for  Africa,  but  was  stern  and  penurious  with 
England,  you  can  see  the  danger  that  will  come  to 
the  Southern  white  man  if  we  indulge  him  while 
making  exactions  of  the  Negro. 

"The  sooner  the  standard  of  voting  for  the 
white  man  is  made  as  high  as  that  for  the  colored 
man,  the  better  for  the  white  man.  Indulgence 
leads  to  decay,  not  to  advancement,"  said  Molair, 
his  whole  attitude  signifying  abhorrence  of  the 
notion  of  coddling  any  section  of  the  white  race. 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  you  speak  thus,  Mr.  Molair. 
In  the  event  that  my  course  is  questioned,  I  trust 


CLEAR  SAILING.  177 

that  you  will  give  voice  to  such  sentiments  as  you 
have  just  expressed." 

The  interview  now  came  to  a  close,  and  Baug 
took  his  departure  with  a  much  lighter  heart. 
With  great  zest  he  entered  upon  the  task  of 
raising  the  funds  necessary  to  fight  through  the 
test  case  to  be  inaugurated  by  Uncle  Jack  accord- 
ing to  secret  plans  laid  out  by  Eina. 

Baug  withheld  action  on  Uncle  Jack's  part  look- 
ing toward  the  testing  of  the  law  in  question  until 
such  a  time  as  he  should  feel  able  to  take  care  of 
the  financial  end  of  the  matter. 

Ah,  that  was  a  dreary,  dreary  wait!  And  while 
Baug  in  thus  waiting,  and  chafing  while  he  waits, 
let  us  take  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  catch 
a  glimpse  of  other  friends  of  ours. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

DESIRES  HER  WILL  CHANGED. 

F  the  marriage  of  Clotille  and  Conroe  could 
have  been  postponed  until  Baug  was  dis- 
posed of,  and  until  the  conception  had  been 
fully  developed  in  Miss  Letitia's  mind  that  the 
harmonious  relations  between  the  races  in  Belrose 
were  to  continue,  it  might  have  been  that  the  wed- 
ding would  not  have  so  excited  the  wrath  of  Miss 
Letitia;  but  as  it  was,  her  rage  was  boundless. 
When  on  the  day  following  her  marriage,  Clotille 
returned  to  her  cousin's  home  for  the  purpose  of 
pleading  her  cause,  Miss  Letitia  slammed  the  door 
in  her  face.  As  for  Conroe,  she  despised  him  ut- 
terly. 

"The  black  varmint!  I  feel  like  wringing  his 
old  head  off.  The  idea  of  him  poking  his  old  black 
face  into  our  family!"  Such  was  the  comment 
Miss  Letitia  passed  upon  Conroe. 

Having  felt  assured  that  Clotille  would  marry 
in  a  manner  to  please  her,  Miss  Letitia  had  drawn 
up  her  will,  leaving  her  fortune  to  her,  but  she 
now  resolved  upon  changing  all  this,  and  pro- 
ceeded at  once  to  Seth  Molair's  office  for  the  pur- 
pose of  having  him  draw  up  another  will. 

"Well,  what  has  the  former  beneficiary  done 
to  displease  you,  if  I  am  not  asking  too  much?" 
inquired  Molair  in  an  effort  to  draw  Miss  Letitia 


DESIRES  HER  WILL  CHANGED.  179 

out,  not  being  altogether  pleased  with  that  fanat- 
ical look  in  her  eye. 

"She  has  turned  out  to  be  a  fool/'  snapped  out 
the  angry  Miss  Letitia. 

"Gone  mad?"  asked  Molair,  in  surprise. 

"Worse  than  that." 

"Oh,"  said  Molair,  afraid  to  pursue  the  sub- 
ject any  further,  as  it  seemed  to  involve  some 
moral  turpitude. 

"Yes,  I  would  have  rather  seen  her  in  her  grave 
a  thousand  times  than  for  her  to  have  turned  out 
like  she  did,"  said  Miss  Letitia. 

"Too  bad ;  too  bad.  But  you  can  console  your- 
self with  the  fact  that  you  set  her  a  good  example 
and  taught  her  the  right  way." 

"I  haven't  set  her  any  example  at  all.  I  am  a 
miss.  But  I  taught  her  the  right  way  all  right,  the 
crazy  thing." 

"Oh,  she  is  really  crazy,  then?"  remarked  Mo- 
lair. 

"Crazy?  Of  course  she  is  crazy,  as  crazy  as  any 
lunatic  in  the  asylum." 

"Well,  we  ought  to  have  her  put  up,  then,"  said 
Molair. 

"I  wish  you  could  send  her  to  the  penitentiary 
and  hang  the  black  ape." 

Molair  was  considerably  puzzled  as  to  just  what 
the  nature  of  the  case  was,  and  he  was  disposed  to 
drop  the  discussion,  but  Miss  Letitia  never  tired 
of  letting  people  know  just  what  she  thought  of 
the  matter. 


180  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

"Yes,  sir,  as  many  yellow  girls  as  that  fellow 
could  have  got,  and  some  of  them  almost  white, 
too — the  idea  of  him,  >as  black  as  he  is,  marrying 
Clotille.  It's  a  shame.  It  has  almost  broken 
my  heart." 

"Black  as  he  is!  Who  in  the  thunder  is  this 
Clotille  that  you  object  to  her  marrying  a  black 
man?  Is  she  white?"  asked  Molair. 

"White!  Of  course  not.  There  is  where  the 
outrage  comes  in.  She  is  black.  The  idea  of  two 
black  people  marrying  each  other  in  America 
when  they  have  got  a  chance  to  marry  lighter!" 

Molair  now  laid  down  his  pen  and  looked  in- 
tently at  Miss  Letitia,  it  beginning  to  dawn  upon 
him  as  to  what  the  true  situation  was. 

"Do  you  mean  to  say  that  you  are  going  to  dis- 
inherit this  dark  girl  because  she  has  decided  to 
marry  a  man  with  a  complexion  similar  to  her 
own?"  asked  Molair. 

"That  is  exactly  what  I  am  going  to  do,  sir.  I 
shall  cut  her  off  without  a  penny.  Who  wants 
to  always  be  a  problem?  Who  wants  some  one 
else  to  always  have  his  foot  on  your  neck?  Amer- 
ica hasn't  got  enough  of  the  grace  of  God  in  her 
heart  to  treat  a  black  man  as  she  would  a  white 
man.  Her  life  is  a  living  lie.  And  I  want  every 
drop  of  the  despised  blood  sucked  into  her  veins. 
I  want  her  to  eat  up  the  race  she  hates.  You 
have  set  the  colored  man's  house  on  fire,  you  pour 
oil  on  it  every  day  and  keep  it  burning.  Don't 
rats  leave  a  sinking  ship?  Don't  lice  crawl  off 


DESIRES  HER  WILL  CHANGED.  181 

of  the  scalp  of  a  dying  person?  Don't  we  bury 
corpses  ?  Sure,  I'll  disinherit  that  girl  for  marry- 
ing so  as  to  perpetuate  the  black  face,  the  seed 
of  discord.  I'll  cut  her  off  without  a  copper  and 
wish  that  I  could  will  for  her  to  beg  bread  from 
door  to  door,  so  help  me  Moses." 

Molair  reflected  awhile  and  then  said:  "Now, 
I  am  a  Southern  white  man,  and  believe  in  the 
preservation  of  both  races.  I  do  not  care,  even 
in  a  professional  way,  to  be  connected  with  your 
notion  of  the  absorption  of  the  blood  of  your  race 
into  ours." 

"Aha!  Aha!"  said  Miss  Letitia,  rising,  "you 
disfranchise,  you  ostracize,  you  jim  crow,  you 
lynch,  you  burn  a  man  because  he  is  colored, 
then  hold  up  your  hands  in  holy  horror  because 
he  seeks,  by  honorable  means,  to  get  away  from 
being  colored.  If  you  want  a  man  to  stay  colored, 
why  in  the  name  of  God  don't  you  treat  him  right 
as  colored?  That  fool  Clotille  has  gone  back  on 
me,  but  don't  you  forget  the  leaven  is  at  work,  and 
if  you  don't  treat  the  colored  people  right  in  every 
way,  in  the  ages  to  come,  you  are  not  going  to  have 
any  colored  people." 

Drawing  near  to  Molair,  Miss  Letitia  pointed 
her  finger  at  him  and  said :  "You  tell  the  Negro- 
hater  among  the  whites  to  keep  on  building  the 
fires  of  prejudice,  keep  on  jim  crowing  Negroes, 
keep  on  disfranchising,  keep  on  painting  the 
sky  as  black  as  midnight!  Aha,  keep  on!  Mil- 
lions have  crossed  into  your  race  already  and 


182  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

millions  are  to  follow,  yes  millions  are  to  follow. 
Put  that  in  your  pipe,  great  sir,  and  smoke  it! 
We  will  all  be  white  one  day,  and  it  won't  be  by 
intermarriage,  either." 

With  her  head  thrown  high  in  the  air,  Miss 
Gilbreath  swept  majestically  out  of  Molair's  office. 

When  Miss  Letitia  had  gone,  Molair  sat  with 
knitted  brow  toying  with  his  pencil,  giving  earn- 
est thought  to  the  situation  presented  by  her  at- 
titude. 

"Indirect  amalgamation  is  this  woman's  game, 
I  see.  But  I  want  no  amalgamation,  direct  or  in- 
direct, immediate  or  remote.  I  want  no  incorpor- 
ation of  the  Negro  blood  into  our  race  even  after 
that  blood  has  been  so  diluted  as  to  lose  its  power 
of  pigmentation.  I  don't  want  Negro  blood  in 
the  blood  of  our  race  even  though  it  be  in  the  pro- 
portion to  the  waters  of  Lake  Erie  to  those  of 
the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  combined."  Such 
were  Molair's  thoughts  as  he  contemplated  Miss 
Letitia's  course. 

"Now  what  am  I  to  do  to  balk  this  game?  We 
toss  all  mulattoes  to  the  Negroes.  We  cannot 
pass  a  law  forbidding  them  to  intermarry  with 
the  Negroes  and  forcing  them  to  intermarry 
among  themselves.  And  if  we  did  force  them  to 
intermarry  among  themselves  exclusively,  would 
we  not  soon  have  a  large  white  race  of  them  ready 
for  surreptitious  disappearance  into  our  ranks?" 
reflected  Molair. 

Reaching  for  his  telephone  Molair  called  up 


DESIRES  HER  WILL  CHANGED.  183 

the  more  prominent  members  of  the  Belrose  bar 
and  asked  them  as  an  act  of  professional  court- 
esy to  him  to  refuse  to  draw  up  a  will  for  one 
Letitia  Gilbreath,  colored,  who  might  call  upon 
them  for  such  service.  Molair  had  divined  that 
Miss  Letitia  was  of  that  class  of  colored  people 
of  an  aristocratic  turn  of  mind,  whose  sympa- 
thies were  with  the  more  aristocratic  element  of 
whites,  and  he  felt  assured  that  she  would  not 
call  upon  the  Negro  attorneys  nor  the  more  hum- 
ble white  lawyers  for  service,  but  upon  the  white 
lawyers  of  eminence,  locally.  So  correctly  had  he 
gauged  Miss  Letitia  that  she  entered  no  law  office 
but  that  his  message  had  preceded  her.  Every- 
where, therefore,  she  met  with  a  polite  but  posi- 
tive refusal  to  do  the  work  that  she  desired  done. 

Thoroughly  enraged,  Miss  Letitia  returned  to 
her  home  vowing  that  she  would  draw  the  will 
herself,  and  to  that  end  began  the  purchase  of 
law  books,  and  the  study  of  law.  It  was  an  in- 
teresting sight  to  behold  her  with  her  eye  glasses 
sitting  high  upon  her  nose  poring  over  authorities 
on  wills. 

"Yes,  sir;  I'll  have  me  a  will  that  will  disin- 
herit a  Driscoll  to  the  ten-thousandth  generation 
and  I  won't  consult  them  poor  white  lawyers  nor 
the  colored  ones  either.  I'll  draw  the  will  my- 
self if  it  takes  me  a  lifetime  to  get  it  straight," 
was  Miss  Letitia's  emphatic  boast. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

MOLAIR   AT    WORK. 

HE  more  Molair  reflected  on  the  situation 
of  Conroe  and  Clotille,  as  disclosed  by  his 
interview  with  Miss  Letitia,  the  more  he 
found  his  sympathies  going  out  to  them. 

"Here,"  said  Molair  to  himself,  "is  a  test  of  my 
sincerity  on  this  matter  of  preserving  racial  integ- 
rity. I  must  see  to  it  that  this  couple  does  not  lose 
by  the  course  they  have  pursued  and  this  woman 
must  be  converted,  just  must  be.  How  can  we 
hope  to  deal  with  this  great  question  in  the  large 
if  we  can't  handle  it  in  small  bits?" 

Molair  now  entered  upon  a  close  study  of  Miss 
Letitia,  not  hesitating  to  call  upon  her  and  to 
engage  her  in  close  conversation,  searching  for 
the  mainspring  of  the  benumbing  pessimism  that 
held  her  within  its  grasp.  Discovering  incidentally 
what  a  great  admiration  Miss  Letitia  had  for  fire 
fighters,  it  occurred  to  Molair  that  it  might  be 
possible  to  have  Conroe  ingratiate  himself  into  her 
good  graces  through  service  in  this  department. 

The  man  at  the  head  of  the  colored  fire  com- 
pany, having  had  no  previous  experience  in  deal- 
ing with  men  as  subordinates,  was  not  giving  en- 
tire satisfaction,  and  Mayor  Molair,  anxious  that 
this  initial  experiment  should  prove  to  be  eminent- 
ly successful,  had  been  casting  about  for  a  more 
competent  man  for  a  captain.  Inquiry  concerning 


MOLAIR   AT   WORK.  185 

Conroe  convinced  Molair  that  he  was  a  man  of  the 
type  desired,  so  he  sent  for  Conroe  and  made  him 
a  tender  of  the  position. 

To  Conroe,  Molair  put  the  matter  in  the  follow- 
ing light: 

"We  are  inaugurating  a  new  era  in  Belrose, 
and  what  we  do  here  may  spread  over  the  South. 
The  Negroes  who  honestly  seek  to  work  with  us  in 
a  patriotic  manner  are  to  be  encouraged.  So 
much  depends  upon  how  we  start  off.  I  know 
that  it  will  not  pay  you  as  well  financially  to  be 
a  captain  of  a  fire  department  as  to  be  a  phy- 
sician; nor  in  the  eyes  of  the  public  will  as  much 
dignity  attach  to  the  post.  But  surely  it  is  a  cause 
well  worthy  of  a  sacrifice,  the  paving  of  the  way 
for  the  utilization  of  members  of  your  race  in  the 
public  service." 

Thus  appealed  to,  Conroe  gave  up  the  promise 
of  a  successful  medical  career  to  take  charge  of 
the  colored  fire  company.  Clotille  at  first  de- 
murred, then  thinking  of  what  a  splendid  oppor- 
tunity was  thus  afforded  Conroe  to  win  Miss  Le- 
titia's  favor,  she  gave  her  assent.  It  was  thus 
that  Conroe  entered  the  Belrose  fire  department. 

And  just  as  was  expected,  Conroe's  stalwart  fig- 
ure fighting  the  flames  from  time  to  time  appealed 
to  the  imagination  of  Miss  Letitia,  and  her  atti- 
tude toward  him  began  to  soften  so  that  Clotille's 
hopes  began  to  rise. 

B'ut  in  order  that  he  might  be  able  to  present 
to  the  diseased  mind  of  Miss  Letitia  overwhelm- 


186  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

ing  evidence  that  a  brighter  day  was  ahead,  Mo- 
lair  decided  to  branch  out  in  every  needful  di- 
rection where  he  had  cause  to  think  that  he 
would  effect  a  result  that  would  serve  as  oil  on 
the  hinges  of  the  door  of  hope.  The  one  thing 
in  the  South  that  had  caused  Molair's  heart  to 
quake  with  fear  because  of  the  ocean  of  possi- 
bilities bound  up  in  it,  was  the  "bad  Negro"  ele- 
ment with  its  power  to  summon  from  their  sleep 
long  discarded  savage  instincts.  Molair  therefore 
now  gave  thought  to  this  "bad  Negro"  question. 

Thus  one  morning  as  the  ministers  of  the  col- 
ored churches  of  Belrose  were  in  the  midst  of 
their  weekly  meeting  in  one  of  their  church  edi- 
fices, Molair  unexpectedly  put  in  his  appearance. 
As  white  men  now  very  rarely  attended  Negro 
meetings  the  coming  of  Molair  was  a  genuine 
surprise. 

As  an  act  of  courtesy  to  the  Mayor,  the  sus- 
pension of  the  regular  order  was  moved  that  the 
body  might  hear  whatever  the  Mayor  might  have 
to  say. 

Molair  went  forward  and  said:  "Members  of 
the  Conference,  a  matter  of  deep  concern  brings 
me  to  you  this  morning."  On  the  faces  of  all 
there  came  the  most  intent  expression  as  a  result 
of  this  remark. 

"What  on  earth  can  it  be  now?"  was  the 
thought  of  the  colored  men  who,  like  the  whites, 
were  ever  on  the  alert,  always  apprehensive  as  to 
what  was  to  come  next. 


MOLAIR   AT    WORK.  187 

"Since  I  have  been  your  Mayor  I  have  been 
passing  over  Belrose,  noting  the  condition  of  your 
people.  Many,  very  many,  of  you  are  going  up, 
up,  up,  and  I  am  proud  of  this  very  evident  prog- 
ress. (Applause.) 

"But  side  by  side  with  this  upward  movement 
on  the  part  of  many,  there  is,  I  have  observed, 
an  appalling  downward  movement.  Evidently 
hope  and  self-respect  have  broken  loose  in  a  num- 
ber of  your  race  and  they  are  sinking,  sinking  to 
awful  depths.  Just  think  of  what  is  called  'Hell's 
Half  Acre/  and  that  settlement  surrounding  the 
building  known  as  the  'Ark.'  I  doubt  that,  this 
side  of  the  hell  of  which  you  preach,  you  will  find 
such  terrible  degradation  elsewhere." 

"The  slums  of  New  York,"  a  voice  interposed. 

"Yes,  yes.  But, —  at  any  rate,  let  us  keep  our 
minds  on  Belrose  just  now."  (Applause.) 

"Now,  as  to  how  much  my  people,  the  Southern 
white  people,  have  contributed  to  this  degeneracy 
by  tolerating  things  that  smacked  of  hostility  to 
your  race,  I  have  not  come  this  morning  to  argue. 
Nor  am  I  unmindful  of  the  fact  that  a  measure 
of  the  aloofness  of  your  upper  classes  toward  this 
decaying  element  is  in  part  due,  perhaps  to  the 
fact  that  it  has  been  preached  to  them  that  the 
bad  Negro  keeps  the  good  Negro  back.  Thus 
taught,  the  less  spiritual  among  you  have  perhaps 
grown  to  hate  your  submerged  fellows." 

"That  doctrine  has  had  its  effect,"  spoke  up  one. 

"I  have  come  here  to  assure  you  as  the  Mayor 
of  Belrose  that  I  shall  stand  for  exact  justice,  the 


188  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

impartial  enforcement  of  the  law  and  the  encour- 
agement of  all  elements  of  our  population  to  look 
upward  and  not  downward.  So  now  you  good 
Negro  Belrosans  need  not  regard  yourselves  as 
having  any  personal  problems  because  of  your 
race,  so  far  as  I  can  remedy  matters."  (Pro- 
longed applause.) 

"Now,  I  have  a  favor  to  ask  of  you.  You  are 
going  to  find,  I  think,  that  the  aspiring  Negro 
will  have  much  less  of  a  problem  concerning  him- 
self, so  far  as  we  whites  are  concerned.  In  this 
coming  new  day  of  hopefulness,  nay,  even  before 
it  is  full  upon  you,  can  we  not  have  you  turn  your 
thoughts,  not  away  from  your  rights,  but  more 
toward  these  congested  centers  of  vice,  popu- 
lated by  your  people?  They  breed  disease, 
hold  down  real  estate  values,  mar  the  beauty  of 
our  city,  and  they  do  you  inestimable  damage  in 
the  eyes  of  Northern  visitors  who  are  daily  in 
our  midst." 

This  last  remark  went  home  with  great  force. 
The  maintaining  of  the  respect  and  sympathy  of 
the  North,  the  author  of  freedom  and  enfran- 
chisement, was  a  matter  of  deep  concern  to  the 
Negroes,  as  Molair  knew,  and  he  had  in  him 
enough  of  the  politician  to  pull  on  that  chord 
for  what  he  deemed  a  worthy  purpose. 

Continuing  Mr.  Molair  said:  "Is  this  not  pe- 
culiarly your  problem?  Ties  of  blood  link  you 
to  these  denizens  of  an  earthly  hell.  We  may 
build  a  glorious  structure  here  in  Belrose,  but 


MOLAIR   AT    WORK.  189 

from  these  depths  can  come  the  volcanic  fires  of 
evil  in  ferment  that  will  overturn  all  that  we 
create." 

As  a  result  of  Molair's  talk  a  meeting  was  ar- 
ranged between  the  white  and  colored  ministers 
and  plans  inaugurated  for  a  vigorous  crusade  for 
the  redemption  of  the  centers  of  vice.  Hopeful 
of  the  mitigation  of  this  menace  to  the  peace  of 
both  races,  that  in  an  evil  moment  might  summon 
base  passions  that  would  overturn  the  work  of  ten 
thousand  self-sacrificing  lives,  Molair  now  turned 
his  thoughts  in  another  direction. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

THE  NORTH  AND  THE  SOUTH. 

ECOGNIZING  the  fact  that  the  outside 
world,  whether  the  South  so  willed  or  not, 
could  by  needlessly  stirring  up  resentments 
within  its  borders,  materially  affect  that  whole- 
some atmosphere  which  he  was  now  desirous  of 
creating,  Molair  decided  to  accept  an  urgent  invi- 
tation to  a  private  interview  which  had  been  ex- 
tended to  him  a  short  while  back  by  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  who  had  heard  of  the  Belrose 
movement.  With  a  view,  therefore,  to  enlisting 
the  President's  co-operation  in  a  policy  that  would 
aid  him  much  in  his  work  of  atmosphere  making, 
Molair  took  his  journey  to  Washington  and  the 
White  House. 

"Mr.  Molair,  you  have  no  idea  of  the  profound 
satisfaction  that  we  of  the  North  have  that  a 
man  of  your  type  has  caught  hold  of  the  out- 
stretched hand  of  the  better  element  of  colored 
people,"  said  the  President,  grasping  Molair's 
hand  warmly. 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  President,"  said  Molair  sim- 
ply, preferring  to  have  the  President  declare  him- 
self fully  before  having  much  to  say  himself. 

"Now,  I  think  that  you  people  of  the  South 
have  misunderstood  me  greatly  as  to  my  attitude 
toward  the  colored  race,  and  I  would  like  to  lay 
bare  my  heart  to  you,"  said  the  President. 


THE  NORTH  AND  THE  SOUTH.  191 

"I  trust  that  you  will,  Mr.  President.  There 
should  be  the  utmost  candor  in  this  matter." 

"Well,  to  begin  with,  the  great  bulk  of  the  col- 
ored people  voted  for  me,  their  taxes  help  to  pay 
my  salary,  and  as  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
army  and  navy  I  bear  a  direct  relation  to  their 
patriotism  which  is  a  part  of  our  reliance  for  the 
defense  of  the  flag." 

"All  very  true,"  said  Molair. 

"I  am  a  proud  man,  permit  me  to  say,  to  this 
extent — I  do  not  wish  any  man  or  set  of  men 
to  do  any  more  for  me  than  I  do  for  them.  I  do 
not  like  being,  even  to  an  infinitesimal  extent,  a 
pauper,  living  off  of  the  unrequited  bounty  of 
others.  As  President,  as  the  head  of  the  na- 
tion, therefore,  I  have  simply  tried  to  give  official 
recognition  to  this  element  of  our  population," 
said  the  President. 

Continuing  the  President  said :  "I  am  no  spe- 
cial friend  of  the  Negroes,  and  if  the  necessity 
ever  arises  I  will  show  you  that  I  am  not.  I  do 
not  believe  that  the  colored  people  should  have  spe- 
cial favors  because  they  are  colored,  nor  on  the 
other  hand,  should  they  have  special  burdens  be- 
cause of  their  color. 

"America  is  a  great  Darwinian  field,  dedicated 
by  fate  to  the  cause  of  genuine  democracy,  the 
rule  of  the  united  judgment  of  men.  Here  we 
are  to  have  the  wild,  grand  play  of  universally  and 
absolutely  unfettered  forces,  and  out  of  the  stren- 
uous struggling  the  fittest  are  to  survive,  and  the 


192  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

final  man  is  to  be  evolved.  I  believe  simply  in 
giving  the  colored  man  the  same  chance  in  this 
great  Darwinian  field  that  other  men  are  given, 
no  more,  no  less.  Now  what  have  you  to  say  to 
that?" 

"Absolutely  nothing,  Mr.  President,"  said  Mo- 
lair.  "So  far  as  I  am  concerned  I  ask  nothing  for 
me  and  mine  that  I  begrudge  to  the  colored  man. 
What  I  have  come  to  ask  of  you  is  along  another 
line.  Your  party,  I  fear,  has  sometimes  been 
a  little  insincere  in  some  of  its  utterances,  has 
made  declarations  for  political  effect,  simply. 
Hereafter  confine  your  party  utterances  to  just 
such  things  as  you  really  mean  to  do.  For  heav- 
en's sake  don't  make  our  race  question  a  political 
football.  The  issues  are  too  grave. 

"Inflame  the  masses  of  the  South  by  meaning- 
less baits  to  the  Negro  voter  if  you  choose,  but 
remember  that  this  course  vitally  affects  the  wel- 
fare of  the  race  concerning  which  interest  is  pro- 
fessed. For  out  of  this  inflamed  mass  we  have  to 
draw  policemen,  constables,  sheriffs,  legislators 
and  juries.  If  we  of  the  South  can  just  get  rid  of 
that  part  of  the  entanglement  which  is  only  po- 
litical by-play,  the  insincere  part  of  the  pro- 
gramme, not  much  trouble  will  be  caused  by  what 
your  earnest,  high-minded  men  and  women  have 
to  advise." 

In  great  detail  Molair  now  went  into  the  South- 
ern situation  and  cited  move  after  move,  the  insin- 
cerity of  which  was  subsequently  demonstrated, 


THE  NORTH  AND  THE  SOUTH.  193 

but  which  was  in  the  public  eye  long  enough  to 
do  great  harm  to  the  South  and  the  Negro. 

The  showing  made  a  marked  impression  on  the 
President,  who  now  said: 

"I  regard  your  request,  Mr.  Molair,  as  a  rea- 
sonable one  and  I  pledge  you  my  support  in  try- 
ing to  have  my  party  deal  sacredly  with  this  ques- 
tion; say  nothing  but  what  it  means.  Now, 
Mr.  Molair,  will  you  agree  to  do  as  much  in 
the  South?  In  cases  where  there  has  been  abso- 
lutely no  cause  to  fear  the  Negro  a  hue  and  cry 
of  Negro  domination  has  often  been  raised  by 
men  in  your  section.  Cannot  both  sections  rise 
to  the  plane  where  we  will  not  make  a  football 
out  of  this  helpless,  unarmed  race,  Mr.  Molair?" 

"Yes,  yes,  I  will  do  all  that  I  can/*  responded 
Molair,  aware  of  the  great  task  before  him. 

The  interview  now  came  to  a  close  and  as  Molair 
left  the  White  House  he  said  to  himself,  "When 
political  by-play  is  eliminated  North  and  South 
much  that  produces  pessimistic  Letitia  Gilbreaths 
will  then  disappear.  With  the  President  work- 
ing to  that  end  in  the  North  and  the  house  of 
Molair  committed  to  that  policy  in  the  South,  who 
will  say  that  we  shall  not  win?" 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

MOLAIR  AND  AN  OLD  FRIEND. 

ROM  Washington,  Molair  now  journeyed  to 
the  city  of  New  York  in  quest  of  a  former 
Belrose  boy,  a  boon  companion  of  his 
younger  days,  who  had  plunged  into  the  commer- 
cial life  of  the  great  metropolis  and  won  for  him- 
self the  title  of  multi-millionaire.  As  Molair  drew 
near  the  magnificent  Fifth  Avenue  mansion  of 
this  former  Belrose  boy,  Herbert  Rogan,  he 
paused  for  a  moment's  meditation. 

"Yes,  I'll  go.  It  is  not  for  myself.  I  know 
Herbert's  heart  is  yet  warm  with  love  for  the 
South.  We  never  forget,"  said  Molair. 

Reaching  Rogan 's  home  Molair  was  admitted  by 
a  servant  and  escorted  to  the  waiting  room.  While 
sitting  here  his  eye  quietly  wandered  around 
the  room  noting  the  evidences  of  great  wealth 
everywhere  abundant. 

"Why  hello,  Seth!  If  you  were  only  the  hun- 
dredth part  of  a  lady  I  would  kiss  you,  I  am  so 
glad  to  see  you,  boy,"  said  Rogan  with  great  cor- 
diality. 

"No  more  glad  to  see  me  than  I  am  to  see  you, 
Herbert,"  said  Molair  soberly  but  feelingly. 

The  genuine  warmth  of  the  greeting  of  his 
boyhood  friend  who  had  become  one  of  the  world's 
richest  men  deeply  touched  Molair,  for  he  had 


MOLAIR  AND  AN  OLD  FRIEND.  195 

somewhat  feared  that  great  riches  might  have,  to 
some  degree,  affected  the  warm,  open  Southern 
heart  of  Herbert. 

The  two  now  retired  to  Herbert's  private  den 
where  they  could  engage  in  a  heart-to-heart. 

"Well,  Rogan,"  began  Molair,  "I  disagreed  rad- 
ically with  your  course  in  coming  north  hunting 
for  the  golden  fleece,  but  you  came  and  now  here 
I  am  at  your  feet." 

"No,  no,  Molair,  it  is  I  who  am  at  your  feet. 
How  often  have  I  recalled  your  words  to  me,  urg- 
ing me  to  not  enter  the  mad,  mad,  American  race 
for  wealth.  I  did  not  heed  your  voice  and  have 
gained  my  millions.  I  hope  that  I  escaped  the 
drain  on  my  soul  which  you  feared,  and  if  I  have 
I  owe  it  to  the  exhortation  that  you  gave  me  to 
take  care  of  the  Herbert  that  was  within  me.  So, 
I  say  I  am  at  your  feet." 

"I  am  so  glad  that  the  warm-hearted,  patriotic 
Southern  heart  is  not  dead  in  you,  Herbert,  for 
just  now  we  have  need  of  you,"  said  Molair. 

A  mere  suggestion  that  the  South  needed  him 
was  sufficient  at  any  time  to  quicken  Rogan's  in- 
terest, and  he  said,  "Out  with  it,  Seth.  I  am 
ready  for  the  bugle  blast  at  any  moment." 

"Now  my  mission  is  this,  Herbert.  We  of  the 
South  have  been  cruel  to  our  poor  whites.  In  the 
days  of  slavery  we  kept  them  back  by  making  use 
of  slave  labor.  In  those  days  there  sprang  up 
an  animosity  between  the  sleek,  well-fed  Negro 
slave  and  the  poor  whites  who  accused  the  Ne- 


196  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

groes  of  keeping  them  poor  by  working  for  noth- 
ing. This  element  of  whites  has  been  emanci- 
pated by  the  freer  conditions  of  labor  that  came 
after  the  war,  is  fast  finding  itself  and  is  march- 
ing to  the  front  to  take  charge  of  affairs.  It  has 
discovered  its  power  and  is  going  to  use  it." 

"You  have  sized  the  situation  up  exactly.  It 
was  partly  because  I  saw  the  coming  of  this  re- 
gime that  I  fled  the  South,  Molair.  I  saw  that 
our  day  was  over,  that  the  day  of  the  common 
man  was  on  in  the  South.  But  go  on,"  interposed 
Rogan. 

"Now  there  came  over  from  slavery,"  resumed 
Molair,  "the  inherited  feeling  of  the  poor  white 
toward  the  Negro,  which  feeling  is  accentuated 
by  the  fact  that  the  Negro  is  yet  his  industrial 
rival.  Here  then  is  a  veritable  gold  mine  for  the 
demagogue.  In  return  for  office  he  tosses  to  this 
element  the  Negro,  hobbled,  gagged  or  quartered 
according  as  he  thinks  will  most  please  this  ele- 
ment." 

"A  sad,  sad  situation,"  said  Rogan. 

"Now  our  hope  is  to  free  the  South  from  that 
man  whose  chief  stock  in  trade  is  hatred  of  a  weak 
and  despised  class.  We  may  not  convert  or  deter 
the  demagogue,  but  we  can  lift  our  people  beyond 
his  reach." 

"A  stupendous  task,  a  long  drawn  out  strug- 
gle," said  Rogan. 

"That  is  true,  very  true.  The  fact  that  in  the 
South  we  have  a  double  school  system  adds  to  the 


MOLAIR  AND  AN  OLD  FRIEND.  197 

size  of  the  problem  of  education.  I  have  come  to 
ask  you,  Herbert,  to  devote  some  of  your  millions 
to  the  education  of  our  neglected  white  popula- 
tion." 

Without  indicating  whether  Molair's  request 
met  with  favor  or  disfavor,  Rogan  arose  and  said : 
"Come  with  me  to  my  office,  Seth." 

On  the  way  to  the  office  Rogan  was  silent.  His 
mind  was  once  more  in  Dixie.  He  was  playing 
by  the  side  of  the  babbling  brooks,  gathering  daff- 
odils from  her  fields,  chasing  lightning  bugs  in 
the  gloaming,  speeding  over  her  country  roads  in 
buggies  seated  by  the  side  of  Dixie's  fair  daugh- 
ters, listening  to  the  plantation  melodies  of  the 
Negroes  surging  from  their  warm,  emotional 
hearts.  Turning  his  head  from  Molair  he  dashed 
away  a  tear. 

When  the  men  entered  the  office,  Rogan  opened 
his  safe,  took  out  his  books,  and  recounted  his 
holdings  to  Molair,  demonstrating  to  him  that  he 
was  far  wealthier  than  what  the  outside  world 
estimated. 

Finally  Rogan  said :  "Now,  there  is  my  fortune, 
Molair.  I  say  to  you  in  all  sincerity  that  I  stand 
ready  as  far  as  is  within  my  power  to  respond  to 
any  call  that  you  may  make.  Our  poor,  strug- 
gling section,  with  the  most  complicated  problem 
of  all  of  human  history  must  have  culture,  must 
have  culture." 

Molair  was  deeply  touched  by  the  confidence 
in  his  consideration  and  judgment  shown  by  the 


198  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

most  unusual  offer  of  Herbert,  and  it  was  with 
difficulty  that  he  could  keep  back  the  tears. 

"Now  Seth,  since  that  point  is  settled,  there 
is  a  matter  in  which  I  am  interested  to  which  I 
would  like  to  call  your  attention,"  said  Rogan. 

"Say  on  Herbert,  I  do  hope  that  I  can  help  you." 

"I  have  watched  with  great  interest  your  re- 
cent efforts  to  bring  political  peace  between  the 
white  and  colored  people  of  the  South.  I  hope 
that  you  will  succeed.  The  war  of  spirits  in  the 
South  is  fast  affecting  the  whole  country.  It  is 
bringing  to  the  North  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
Negroes  utterly  unprepared  for  Northern  life, 
and  the  suffering  among  them  is  something  fierce. 
In  some  sections  they  have  aroused  a  hostility  far 
more  intense  than  anything  we  have  in  the  South. 
So  the  coming  of  the  unprepared  is  bad  for  them- 
selves and  bad  for  their  race. 

"Moreover,  politicians  hostile  to  the  economic 
needs  of  the  South,  use  these  Negroes  to  make  po- 
litically hostile  states  that  could  at  one  time  be  re- 
lied upon  to  now  and  then  join  hands  with  the 
South.  If  you  will  study  the  distribution  of  the 
colored  population  and  take  into  account  the  nor- 
mal alignment  of  white  voters  it  will  be  apparent 
that  the  colored  people  can  in  normal  times  prac- 
tically veto  all  of  the  South 's  national  aspirations, 
and  absolutely  forbid  policies  suitable  to  the  eco- 
nomic needs  of  the  South.  In  close  elections  they 
are  the  balance  of  power.  From  our  viewpoint 
this  is  an  unpleasant  fact,  but  it  is  nevertheless  a 


MOLAIR  AND  AN  OLD  FRIEND.  199 

fact.  Now  the  Negro  is  naturally  a  home  lover, 
a  patriot.  If  you  can  honorably  do  so,  make 
terms  with  him  in  the  South  and  word  will  come 
northward  that  will  break  up  this  solid  mass  of 
hostility  to  the  South,"  said  Rogan. 

"Yes,  yes,  another  serious  complication,  but  in 
Belrose  we  have  learned  to  get  together  and  be- 
fore many  years  you  may  expect  to  find  the  col- 
ored people  working  enthusiastically  for  a  South- 
ern man  for  President,"  said  Molair. 

Now  that  political  and  philanthropic  forces  gave 
promise  of  turning  their  faces  in  the  right  direc- 
tion so  far  as  the  South  was  concerned,  Molair  re- 
turned to  Belrose  feeling  assured  that  the  outlook 
was  bright  for  the  killing  of  the  destructive  germs 
to  be  found  in  minds  on  the  order  of  that  of  Miss 
Letitia. 

But  as  we  shall  now  shortly  see  fate  had  a  far 
different  way  of  curing  Miss  Letitia's  pessimism. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE  RUDOLF  FIRE. 

NE  evening  about  the  set  of  sun,  the  city  of 
Belrose  was  aroused  by  the  ringing  of  the 
central  fire  bell.  The  people  of  the  city, 
wherever  they  chanced  to  be,  paused  to  count  the 
strokes  of  the  gong,  that  they  might,  with  the  aid 
of  the  signal,  consult  their  charts  and  thus  locate 
the  fire. 

"Near  Rudolf's!"  Such  was  the  startling  piece 
of  information  that  passed  from  lip  to  lip. 

Rudolf's  was  by  all  odds  the  finest  store  in  the 
city,  and  perhaps  the  finest  in  the  South.  As  for 
Mr.  Rudolf  himself,  he  was  a  man  of  genial  per- 
sonality, a  patriotic  citizen,  anxious  for  the  city's 
growth,  and  he  possessed  in  a  marked  degree  the 
spirit  of  philanthropy.  As  a  consequence  he  had 
won  the  esteem  and  affection  of  the  entire  popula- 
tion of  Belrose,  without  regard  to  class  or  race. 

So,  when  it  was  noised  abroad  that  the  fire  was 
near  Rudolf's,  great  anxiety  was  created,  and 
there  was  a  universal  rush  for  the  scene  of  the 
conflagration. 

The  first  engine  to  arrive  on  the  scene  was  that 
of  the  colored  company. 

The  building  which  was  on  fire  was  not  Rudolf's 
but  the  one  across  the  alley  from  it. 

The  firemen  went  gallantly  to  work  to  combat 
the  flames,  but  the  fire  continued  to  make  rapid 


THE  RUDOLF  FIRE.  201 

headway.  Like  so  many  great  hungry  tongues,  the 
flames  leapt  out  of  the  windows  of  the  burning 
structure  and  seemed  to  knowingly  lick  at  the  Ru- 
dolf building  across  the  way. 

As  Conroe  stood  looking  at  the  menacing,  rag- 
ing flames,  many  thoughts  came  surging  to  his 
mind. 

"All  Belrose  is  out  to-night,  and  all  Belrose  will 
talk  of  what  is  done  here.  The  South  knows 
of  our  fathers,  knows  how  that  in  peace  and  war 
they  followed  the  call  of  duty.  We  can  this  night 
demonstrate  that  we  are  the  sons  of  our  fathers," 
reflected  Conroe. 

"The  only  way  to  save  the  Rudolf  is  to  mount 
its  walls  and  fight  the  flames  from  the  roof,  but 
that  is  a  great  risk,"  thought  Conroe. 

Further  and  further  out  reached  the  tongues  of 
fire,  their  failure  to  reach  the  Rudolf  seeming 
to  enrage  them,  and  each  effort  appeared  to  be 
more  strenuous  than  its  predecessor. 

"The  Rudolf  is  doomed,"  was  the  thought  in 
the  minds  of  all. 

"A  ladder!  a  ladder!"  shouted  Conroe.  A  lad- 
der was  brought  and  placed  beside  the  wall  of  the 
Rudolf.  Conroe  put  one  foot  and  a  hand  on  the 
ladder,  turned  to  his  comrades  and  shouted :  "Men, 
there  is  danger  on  this  wall.  I  will  not  order  you 
to  go,  but  who  will  volunteer  to  follow  me?" 

Two  men  hurried  to  his  side  and,  amid  the 
cheers  of  thousands,  they  ascended  the  ladder  and 
ranged  themselves  on  the  wall. 


202  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

Of  course  Miss  Letitia  was  there,  for  when 
had  she  missed  a  fire  since  there  had  been  col- 
ored firemen? 

"My,  ain't  that  grand!  Ain't  that  inspiring! 
Now,  ain't  that  grand!"  Such  were  the  exclama- 
tions arising  from  Miss  Letitia,  as,  with  hat 
thrown  back  on  her  head,  her  face  wearing  a  rapt 
expression,  she  gazed  upon  the  three  men  fighting 
the  flames.  When  gusts  of  smoke  would  engulf 
the  men  she  would  stand  with  clenched  fists,  the 
picture  of  distress,  but  when  they  again  stood  out 
in  bold  relief  in  the  glare  of  the  flames,  she  would 
heave  a  sigh  of  relief. 

"Look  out!  Look  out!  Look  out!"  "Down! 
Come  down!" 

Such  were  the  cries  that  came  like  a  mighty 
roar  from  the  throats  of  thousands  of  people  who 
had  seen  the  wall  of  the  burning  building  spring 
and  get  ready  for  a  fall.  The  men  on  the  wall 
of  the  Rudolf  did  not  comprehend  the  meaning  of 
the  shout,  so  kept  on  fighting  the  flames. 

"Down !  Come  down !"  the  multitude  continued 
to  shout. 

Miss  Letitia  had  seen  the  danger  and  had  madly 
struggled  through  the  crowd  until  she  reached  the 
ladder  planted  against  the  wall. 

"Dont,  woman!  For  God's  sake,  don't!" 
shouted  the  throng,  while  one  man  put  a  restrain- 
ing hand  upon  her  shoulder. 

"Let  me  alone!  I'll  not  let  these  brave  fellows 
die,"  said  Miss  Letitia,  springing  up  the  ladder 
with  the  agility  of  a  lad. 


THE  RUDOLF  FIRE.  203 

Mounting  the  roof,  Miss  Letitia  screamed, 
"Men,  come  down.  The  wall  is  about  to  fall!" 
Seeing  that  they  heard  her,  Miss  Letitia  turned 
and  began  the  descent. 

The  men  made  a  rush  toward  the  ladder,  but 
it  was  too  late.  Full  against  the  Rudolf  the  wall 
of  the  burning  building  came  with  mighty  force. 

A  roar  of  horror  arose  from  the  throats  of  the 
assembled  thousands,  but  Miss  Letitia  and  the  fire- 
men who  had  gone  with  the  wall  heard  it  not. 

Their  ears  had  become  attuned  to  the  music  or 
the  noises  of  another  world. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

A   FORTUNE    SPURNED. 

HAVE  sinned!     I  have  sinned!" 

With  the  tears  pouring  down  her  cheeks, 
and  her  frame  shaking  with  the  emotions 
that  swept  through  her  being  with  cyclonic  force, 
Clotille  stood  thus  addressing  Baug,  who  had 
called  to  express  his  profound  sorrow  over  the 
loss  of  his  friend  and  her  husband,  Conroe. 

"Bear  up;  be  brave/'  said  Baug,  comfortingly. 

"How  can  I,  Baug,  when  Conroe  is  dead,  and 
I  must  bear  the  responsibility  of  his  death?" 

"Clotille,  you  are  in  no  wise  responsible  for 
Conroe's  sad  end.  He  died  a  death  that  any  one 
might  well  envy — died  in  the  line  of  duty." 

"Ah!  but  you  don't  know,  Baug!  Baug,  this 
commercial  age  sent  a  part  of  its  atmosphere  into 
my  heart.  I  thought  too  much  of  a  fortune.  When 
I  found  it  standing  between  me  and  Conroe  I 
should  have  spurned  it  at  once ;  should  never  have 
dallied  with  it.  I  always  meant  to  spurn  it  if  it 
sought  finally  to  block  our  pathway,  but  I  waited 
too  long,  too  long." 

Clotille  sobbed  so  violently  that  she  had  to 
pause. 

Resuming,  she  said :  "The  fact  that  I  dallied 
with  this  fortune,  allowed  it  to  postpone  my  ac- 
ceptance of  Conroe,  caused  him  to  feel  that  I 


A  FORTUNE  SPURNED.  205 

greatly  desired  it.  It  was  largely  in  the  hope  of 
softening  Cousin  Letitia's  heart  that  he  gave  up 
his  profession  and  entered  the  fire  department, 
and  now — now — poor  Conroe  is  dead — dead — and 
shall  never  more  open  his  lips  to  cheer  my  heart 
with  a  message  of  love." 

"Take  a  seat,"  said  Baug,  leading  Clotille  to  a 
chair. 

When  she  was  more  composed  she  said:  "It 
has  been  discovered  that  Cousin  Letitia  did  not 
carry  out  her  purpose  to  disinherit  me.  An  un- 
finished will  which  she  was  trying  to  draw  herself 
was  found  by  the  side  of  the  one  which  she  had 
made  in  my  favor  but  was  planning  to  alter.  So 
ker  death  has  brought  me  her  fortune." 

Clotille  lifted  her  eyes  to  Baug's  face  and  said : 
"If  anyone  had  told  me  two  days  ago  that  I  could 
despise  money,  I  would  have  denied  it.  But  to- 
day I  despise  it!  I  despise  it  with  all  my  heart. 
Before  God,  I  shall  never  touch  a  penny  of  my 
cousin's  money  for  myself.  It  is  blood  money! 
It  is  blood  money!"  Clotille  now  broke  forth  into 
weeping  afresh,  followed  by  a  long  period  of 
silence.  At  last  she  said : 

"Come,  Baug,  let  us  look  at  him." 

The  two  now  entered  the  room  where  Conroe's 
body  lay  in  a  coffin  ready  for  its  journey  to  its 
narrow  home.  Baug  looked  down  upon  the  face 
of  his  friend  so  serene  in  death,  and  murmured : 
"Happy  boy;  free  at  last." 

"Baug,  in  this  sacred  presence,  I  want  you  to 


206  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

promise  me  that  you  will  take  one-half  of  this 
money  that  will  come  to  me  and  use  it  to  help 
bring  to  the  colored  man  a  man's  chance  as  a 
colored  man.  I  want  to  see  to  it  that  no  other 
dark  couple  has  the  struggle  that  Conroe  and  I 
had. 

"I  shall  not  use  the  other  half,  but  why  I  re- 
tain it  will  appear  later.  Will  you  do  this  for  me? 
It  will  be  something  of  an  atonement  for  my  sin," 
said  Clotille,  softly,  sadly,  earnestly. 

Baug  extended  his  hand  across  the  bier  to  grasp 
the  outstretched  hand  of  Clotille,  and  the  two 
looked  into  the  face  of  Conroe,  who  seemed  to 
smile  his  assent. 

Baug  said:  "Clotille,  I  will  do  as  you  say 
and  will  consecrate  the  fund  to  the  lifting  of  the 
shadow." 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

A  BADLY  NEEDED  OPENING. 

'N  a  corner  of  the  part  of  the  Belrose  depot 
designated  for  the  use  of  colored  patrons, 
Uncle  Jack  and  Baug  sat  awaiting  the  com- 
ing of  the  train  that  was  to  bear  the  former  to  the 
state  of  Alabama  for  the  purpose  of  inaugurating 
a  test  of  the  clause  of  the  recently  adopted  state 
constitution  that  provided  for  the  elimination  of 
the  illiterate  Negro  voter  without  affecting  to  the 
same  degree  the  illiterate  white  voter. 

"I  would  not  have  you  think,  Uncle  Jack,  that  I 
am  using  you  for  a  personal  service,  purely.  It 
is  true  that  the  pressing  of  this  case  will  in  all 
likelihood  bring  me  once  more  under  the  same 
roof  with  Ema  under  circumstances  that  will  per- 
mit my  speaking  to  her  without  inviting  mob  vio- 
lence, but  beyond  that,  what  we  are  doing  is  in 
keeping  with  a  vital  need  of  the  hour. 

"It  is  often  asserted,  Uncle  Jack,  that  our  rights 
came  to  us  amid  the  lingering  passions  of  war 
and  should  not  be  taken  as  the  sober  sense  of  the 
American  people.  If  we  can  get  an  authoritative 
expression  from  our  highest  court  in  this  sober 
day  of  peace,  it  will  count  for  so  much/'  said 
Baug. 

"Uv  co'se  I  doan'  'zackly  understan'  de  full 
uv  de  high  falutin'  pints  yer  make,  Baug,  but  I 
hez  my  idees  on  de  qusshun.  I  ain't  goin'  into  dis 


208  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

heah  testin'  businiss  jes'  ter  bring  yer  an*  Miss 
Eina  nigh  ter  each  udder,  while  dat  is  part  uv 
whut  I  am  atter.  But  I  hez  had  time  ter  thort 
out  dis  thing,  an'  heah  is  my  thorts. 

"Dey  says  dat  Abe  Linktum  said  dat  Ameriky 
coulden'  be  kep'  part  one  thing  an*  part  er  nudder, 
an'  I  sees  dat  dis  whole  country  is  one  day  goin' 
ter  drink  outen  one  spoon  'bout  de  cullud  man. 
Ez  er  cullud  man  it  is  my  lookout  ter  see  ef  dis 
one  spoon  is  ter  be  er  brass  spoon  er  er  silvah  one. 

"Den  ergin  er  ill  littered  white  man  is  my  or- 
rival.  I  got  ter  work  wid  him,  got  ter  go  ter  law 
wid  him,  an'  sometimes  got  ter  sass  an'  ter  fight 
wid  him,  perhaps.  Now  ef  yer  let  er  ill  littered 
white  man  vote,  an'  doan'  let  me  vote  yer  give  him 
dat  much  ekvantage  uv  me.  Now  I  doan'  want  er 
ekvantage  uv  nobotty,  but  in  jestice  ter  myself 
I  doan'  want  nobotty  ter  git  er  ekvantage  uv  me." 

"Well,  Uncle  Jack,  I  am  glad  that  you  see  in 
your  way  the  deep  issues  involved.  Of  course,  I 
don't  know  just  what  your  plan  is,  as  it  was  Miss 
Rapona's  desire  that  I  not  know,  but  I  am  sure 
that  she  consulted  some  eminent  authority  before 
she  advised  you  as  to  the  course  to  pursue.  All  I 
have  to  say  to  you,  Uncle  Jack,  is  that  I  love  you 
as  dearly  as  I  ever  could  have  loved  a  father  had 
I  known  one,  and  I  want  no  harm  to  come  to  you. 
Be  careful  of  yourself." 

The  tremor  in  Baug's  voice  warned  Uncle  Jack 
that  the  conversation  was  taking  too  serious  a 


A  BADLY  NEEDED  OPENING.        209 

turn,  so  he  decided  to  have  a  hearty  laugh  in  an 
effort  to  cheer  somewhat  Baug's  spirit. 

"Doan'  be  uneasy,  Baug.  I  knows  de  white  peo- 
ple putty  well,  an'  knows  how  ter  not  git  in  too 
tight  er  fix,"  said  Uncle  Jack. 

"I  hope  so,  certainly,  Uncle  Jack.  I  crave  to 
have  these  laws  overthrown,  I  crave  to  see  Eina, 
but  I  want  dear  old  Uncle  Jack  to  live,  too,"  said 
Baug  feelingly. 

"Speakin'  uv  tight  fixes  'minds  me  uv  er  time 
wunst  w'en  I  wuz  er  gardenin'  fur  a  white  fam- 
bly,"  began  Uncle  Jack,  determined  to  have  a  last 
laugh  with  Baug  before  they  separated.  "My 
room  wuz  out  in  de  yard  an'  de  cook  staid  in  de 
main  house  ovah  de  dinin'  room.  Wai,  hard  times 
kinder  struck  de  country  an'  throwed  er  lot  er 
men  out  uv  wuk.  Dis  heah  cook  wuz  er  good 
gal,  all  right,  but  she  pinched  off  er  leetul  ter  help 
her  beau  keep  frum  gittin'  hungry  durin'  uv  de 
hard  times.  Dis  beau  had  er  way  uv  creepin'  ter 
dis  gal's  room  jes'  fo'  breakfas'  an'  havin'  her 
bring  him  up  sumpin'  ter  eat. 

"Wai,  one  mornin'  he  wuz  up  stairs  eatin'  er- 
way,  an'  his  eatin's  run  out  fo'  he  wuz  through. 
He  heered  some  one  walkin'  in  de  dinin'  room  un- 
der him,  an'  he  thort  it  wuz  de  cook,  but  it  wuz 
de  white  lady.  He  says,  says  he,  'Honey,  bring  me 
up  ernudder  cup  uv  coffee  an'  ernudder  hot  bis- 
cuit." De  white  'oman  stopped  ter  listen,  an'  de 
feller  thinkin'  dat  de  cook  didunt  quite  heah  said 
er  leetul  louder,  'Say,  honey,  bring  me  up  er  nud- 


210  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

der  cup  uv  coffee  an*  er  nudder  one  uv  dem  white 
folkses  nice  warm  biscuits/ 

"De  white  'oman  went  back  an*  tol'  her  husban' 
whut  she  heered." 

"Hah!  hah!  hah!"  laughed  Uncle  Jack.  "It 
makes  me  laf  ter  think  erbout  it,"  said  he. 

"Wai,  de  white  man  got  er  good  cow  hide  an' 
creeped  up  de  stairs  atter  dis  cullud  feller.  Kaint 
yer  'magine  how  his  eyes  bucked  w'en  dat  white 
man  come  in  dat  room  an*  seed  him  eatin'  his 
grub?  De  cullud  feller  managed  by  skummishin' 
'roun'  to  git  'tween  de  white  man  an*  de  door,  an* 
down  de  stairs  he  run,  de  white  man  right  atter 
him. 

"De  cullud  feller  thort  he  would  run  right  outen 
de  back  gate,  but  it  wuz  shet.  So  he  kep'  right  on 
'roun'  de  hous',  hopin'  ter  gain  ernough  distance 
ter  git  time  ter  open  de  gate  w'en  he  passed  de 
nex'  time.  But  w'en  he  retched  de  gate  de  secon' 
time,  de  white  man  wuz  still  pushin'  him  mighty 
close. 

"By  dis  time  de  noise  'tracted  me,  an'  I  come 
out  ter  see  whut  wuz  de  mattah.  Ez  I  wuz  stand- 
in'  dare  lookin'  heah  comes  de  cullud  feller  fur 
de  third  time,  runnin'  an'  puffin'  an'  blowin',  an' 
de  white  man  right  atter  him,  cuttin'  at  him  wid 
de  cow  hide  fur  ev'ry  step  he  wuz  takin'. 

"As  de  cullud  man  swep'  by  me  lak  er  lightin' 
'spress  he  shouted  back,  'Say,  mistah  gardener, 
please  sah,  if  yer  please,  please  sah,  hab  dat  gate 
wide  open  by  de  time  I  gits  dare  on  my  nex'  roun'.' 


A  BADLY  NEEDED  OPENING.         211 

When  the  laugh  that  followed  the  anecdote  was 
over,  Uncle  Jack  added :  "Yer  see,  Baug,  I  under- 
stand de  white  people,  an'  I'll  try  ter  have  de  gate 
open  whenevah  I  sets  down  ter  eat  grub  dat  dey 
doan'  want  me  ter  eat." 

At  length  the  Alabama  train  was  called  out,  and 
Uncle  Jack  was  escorted  by  Baug  to  the  gate  lead- 
ing to  the  train.  A  hearty  hand  shake,  a  steady 
looking  into  each  other's  eyes,  and  Uncle  Jack  was 
off.  Peace  be  to  his  good  intentions  whatever 
may  betide  his  bones. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
SUNSHINE  AND  STORM. 

S  was  its  wont,  the  election  at  the  Oak  Cliff 
precinct,  a  few  miles  out  from  the  city  of 
Birmingham,  Ala.,  was  proceeding  orderly, 
the  voters  arriving,  depositing  their  ballots  and 
quietly  returning  to  their  several  homes.  An  hour 
or  so  before  the  time  for  the  polls  to  close,  Uncle 
Jack,  who  had  taken  up  his  residence  in  that  State 
and  section,  came  sauntering  up  to  the  door  of 
the  small  store-room  in  which  the  election  was 
being  held. 

The  all-day  watching  on  the  part  of  the  election 
officials  of  the  depositing  of  ballots  in  an  unex- 
citing election  had  been  a  rather  tedious  affair, 
and  as  they  caught  sight  of  Uncle  Jack  a  smile  of 
pleasant  anticipation  appeared  upon  their  faces. 
They  thought  to  beguile  away  the  time  with  a 
few  anecdotes  from  Uncle  Jack,  who  during  his 
residence  there  had  from  time  to  time  enlivened 
groups  of  white  and  colored  men  with  his  humor- 
ous stories  to  such  an  extent  as  to  establish  his 
reputation  as  an  entertainer. 

"Come  in,  Uncle  Jack,  come  in,"  said  the  elec- 
tion judge  sitting  immediately  behind  the  table 
on  which  stood  the  ballot  box. 

Uncle  Jack  did  as  bidden,  and  took  a  seat  that 
was  proffered  him. 


SUNSHINE  AND  STORM.  213 

"Say,  old  fellow,  tell  us  something,"  said  the 
election  judge  who  had  extended  the  invitation, 
tilting  back  his  chair,  a  merry  twinkle  in  his 
eye.  The  other  election  officials  joined  in  the  re- 
quest, and  Uncle  Jack  yielded  to  the  demand. 

"It  is  er  great  wonder  ter  me  how  times  do 
change.  Frum  whut  I  kin  fin'  out  dey  now  got  yer 
white  folks  doin'  whut  yer  all  once  had  us  doin'," 
began  Uncle  Jack.  Judging  that  this  was  a  pre- 
cursor of  some  humorous  incident,  Uncle  Jack 
was  asked  encouragingly  to  explain  himself. 

"Sometimes  er  man  wants  ter  do  whut  he 
thinks  is  right,  but  on  ercount  uv  some  one  else 
he  doos  whut  he  doos,  an'  then  hez  ter  tell  er  fib 
erbout  it.  Now,  yer  white  folks  is  goin'  ter  want 
dis  heah  'lection  to  'pear  ter  be  in  keepin'  wid  de 
United  States  Constertution  w'en  it  ain't." 

"What  on  earth  is  there  funny  about  that, 
Uncle?  We  are  looking  to  you  for  a  joke,  not  a 
lecture  on  constitutional  law,"  said  the  judge. 

"I  is  gittin'  down  ter  de  joke  part.  Yer  see 
I  coulden'  help  frum  thinkin'  how  yer  all  hez  ter 
scramble  'roun'  an'  stretch  de  trufe  er  leetul  lak 
we  use  ter  have  ter  do.  Dey  say  it  made  us  bad 
an'  sneaky.  Ef  it  did,  I  hopes  it  won't  do  de  same 
fur  yer  all." 

"Now  you  are  lecturing  us  on  morals.  Get 
down  to  the  joke." 

"All  right  den.  Speakin'  'bout  how  er  man  hez 
ter  some  times  scramble  ter  git  outen  er  thing 
'min's  me  uv  ole  Joe,  whut  use  ter  b'long  ter  my 


214  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

ole  massa.  Ole  Joe  jes'  would  steal  hogs.  He 
would  say  dat  his  labor  fed  de  hogs,  an*  dat  his 
stomick  wuz  jes'  kerlectin*  honis'  debts  whut  ole 
massa  failed  ter  pay.  His  stomick  wuz  er  shuah 
'nough  good  kerlecter,  too. 

"Wai,  ole  massa  kinder  caught  on  ter  ole  Joe 
an*  one  night  er  short  while  atter  he  heered  er 
pig  squeal,  he  started  towards  ole  Joe's  cabin.  Ole 
Joe  had  spies  out  whut  whistled  er  long  ways 
off  ter  let  him  know  dat  massa  wuz  comin'.  Quick 
ez  er  flash  ole  Joe  grabbed  his  leetul  baby  gal  dat 
wuz  in  de  cradle,  handed  it  ter  his  ole  'oman,  an* 
sent  her  runnin'  out  uv  de  cabin  wid  it.  Ole  Joe 
den  took  de  pig,  slapped  him  in  de  cradle,  kivered 
him  up,  an*  swep'  de  scraped  off  hair  uv  de  pig 
back  in  er  corner  uv  de  room. 

"Wen  massa  come  in  de  cabin  ole  Joe  wuz 
sittin'  down  by  de  cradle  jes'  ez  meek  ez  er  lamb, 
rockin'  it  an*  singin' 

"  'Rock  er  bye  baby  in  de  tree  top, 
Wen  de  win'  blows  der  cradle  will  rock; 
W'en  de  tree  breaks  de  cradle  'ull  fall, 
An'  down  'ull  come  baby  an'  cradle  an'  all.' 

"  'Whut  is  de  mattah  dare?'  axed  massa. 

"  'My  baby  is  mighty  sick,  mighty  sick,  massa,' 
said  ole  Joe. 

"  'Dat's  too  bad.  Lemme  take  er  look  at  her,' 
said  massa. 

"Ole  Joe's  eyes  bucked  wide,  he  wuz  so  skeert. 

"  'Naw,  naw,  massa ;  Granny  White  says  dat  ef 


SUNSHINE  AND  STORM.  215 

de  air  straks  dis  baby  gal  er  mine  it'll  shuah  kill 
it,  shuah  kill  it,  massa,  shuah  kill  it. 

"  'I'll  not  keep  de  kiver  up  long,  Joe.  I  jes' 
wants  ter  see  how  de  baby  looks.  A  leetul  air 
mout  he'p  de  baby/  said  massa. 

"  'Now,  massa,  Granny  White  pintedly  says  dat 
jes'  one  breaf  uv  air  will  kill  de  pore  thing.  I 
been  kinder  f eered  ter  breathe  fur  fear  er  gust  uv 
breaf  mout  reach  de  leetul  one  an'  kill  it,'  said 
Joe,  makin'  out  he  wuz  'bout  ter  cry  and  pattin' 
de  pig  right  sof '  an'  tender  lak  an'  tryin'  ter  look 
ez  ef  his  heart  wuz  erbout  ter  break. 

"  'Dat  song  yer  wuz  singin'  wuz  stirrin'  up  air,' 
said  massa. 

"  'Uv  co'se,  massa,  yer  kin  out  argify  er  pore 
slave  lak  me,  but  yer  kaint  keep  me  frum  havin' 
er  tender  heart  fur  my  young  un,'  whined  ole  Joe. 

"  'Wai,  I  am  jes'  goin'  ter  look  at  dis  baby, 
ennyhow,'  said  massa,  walkin'  towards  de  cradle. 

"Ole  Joe  got  up  an'  inched  towards  de  door, 
saying,  'Wai,  massa,  yer  is  boss,  an'  whut  yer  says 
hez  ter  go.  Ef  yer  jes'  will  kill  my  baby  by  lookin' 
at  it,  an'  lettin'  de  air  strak  it,  an'  I  jes'  kaint 
'suade  yer  ter  not  lif '  de  kiver  frum  it,  I  ain't 
got  de  heart  ter  stan'  by  ter  see  it  die.  So 
goodbye  ter  de  baby  an'  goodbye  ter  yer.'  So 
isayin',  ole  Joe  lit  out  an'  fairly  flew,  fur  he 
knowed  dat  de  sick  baby  wuz  one  uv  massa's  fat 
shoat  pigs  wid  his  throat  cut  frum  year  to  year. 

"Now  fur  my  pint.  Dis  'lection  box  heah  ain't 
no  more  got  ballits  in  it  'cordin'  ter  de  constertu- 
tion  dan  dat  cradle  had  er  baby  in  it." 


216  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

A  hearty  laugh  followed  Uncle  Jack's  joke. 

"Come  give  me  your  hand,  Uncle.  That  is  a 
good  one,"  said  the  man  behind  the  election  box. 
Uncle  Jack  approached  the  man  as  if  to  grasp  the 
proffered  hand,  but  when  over  the  box  dropped 
therein  a  ballot  which  he  had  all  the  while  kept 
concealed,  watching  for  an  opportunity  to  cast  it. 

"What  have  you  done?  You  are  not  a  regis- 
tered voter,"  angrily  spoke  the  election  judge,  who 
had  invited  the  hand  shake. 

"I  will  'splain  ter  yer,  sah,"  began  Uncle  Jack. 
"I  is  er  ill-littered  man  an'  my  grandaddy  wuz 
er  slave.  Dey  wouldn't  put  my  name  on  de  reg- 
'stration  books  'cause  my  grandaddy  couldn't  vote. 
Ez  my  grandaddy  wuz  kept  frum  votin'  cause  uv 
his  color  an'  cause  he  wuz  er  slave,  it  is  stretchin' 
color  an'  slavery  down  ter  me  terday  fur  me  ter 
be  shet  out  on  'count  uv  my  grandaddy's  short- 
comin's.  Ter  stretch  color  an'  slav'ry  lak  dat  is 
pintedly  'gainst  de  constertution  uv  de  United 
States.  Ez  I  wuz  shet  out  uv  de  reg'stration  by 
unfair  means,  I  done  come  straight  ter  de  'lection." 

"You  have  violated  the  law,  sir,  and  you  will 
be  jailed,"  angrily  shouted  the  election  judge. 

"Now  dat  is  whut  I  am  aimin'  at.  I  done 
voted.  I  wants  ter  see  ef  de  S'preme  Coat  will 
stan'  fur  me  bein*  punished  fur  not  'beyin'  er  law 
whut  doan'  itself  'bey  de  constertution." 

"Take  that,  you  scoundrel,  trying  to  overthrow 
the  law  of  the  sovereign  State  of  Alabama,"  said 


SUNSHINE  AND  STORM.  217 

the  election  judge,  shooting  his  fist  with  great 
force  squarely  into  Uncle  Jack's  face. 

The  old  man  tottered  back,  then  fell,  his  head 
striking  the  wall  of  the  narrow  room  with  great 
force.  Being  badly  injured  by  the  fall,  Uncle  Jack 
was  rendered  unconscious  and  could  not  rise.  A 
wagon  was  summoned  and  the  wounded  man 
placed  therein.  He  was  rapidly  conveyed  to  Bir- 
mingham, where  he  was  turned  over  to  ttie  United 
States  Marshal  on  the  charge  of  illegal  voting. 
Medical  aid  had  been  summoned  as  soon  as  Bir- 
mingham was  reached,  but  an  examination  of  the 
fracture  of  Uncle  Jack's  skull  caused  by  the  fall 
revealed  the  fact  that  he  had  but  a  short  while  to 
live. 

The  news  of  Uncle  Jack's  exploit  reached  the 
newspaper  offices  and  a  bevy  of  reporters,  ever  on 
the  lookout  for  the  fulfillment  of  that  stand- 
ing dream  of  a  Negro  uprising,  rushed  down 
to  see  him  to  get  an  interview,  if  possible,  but 
Uncle  Jack  was  found  to  be  in  no  condition 
to  be  interviewed.  He  remained  unconscious 
throughout  the  night,  but  on  the  morrow  his  mind 
became  clearer. 

Uncle  Jack  was  apprised  of  the  fact  that  he 
did  not  have  long  to  live,  and  was  asked  whether 
he  had  any  statement  he  desired  to  make.  He  sig- 
nied  his  willingness  to  talk,  and  the  reporters  and 
jail  officials  gathered  in  his  room  in  the  hospital 
ward  to  hear  his  dying  statement.  His  dark, 
sober  face  and  whitened  hair  inspired  a  feeling 


218  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

of  awe  in  those  who  gazed  upon  him  as  he  sat 
propped  up  in  bed. 

Uncle  Jack  began :  "All  uv  my  days,  gemmens, 
I  hez  been  er  cullud  man  dat  tried  ter  git  er  long 
wid  de  white  folks.  I  allus  jes'  nachally  laked 
white  folks.  I  laked  de  gran'  way  dey  walked 
an*  talked.  I  laked  de  way  dey  wern't  skeert 
uv  no  botty.  I  laked  'urn  fur  f eelin'  lak  purtectin' 
de  wimmin  folks.  Ter  make  er  long  story  short  I 
jes'  nachally  laked  white  folks. 

"I  didun't  allus  'gree  wid  'urn,  but  I  allus  could 
sepurate  dare  civil  acts  frum  dare  pussonal  ones. 
Pussonally  dey  wuz  fur  me.  Civully  dey  wuz  er 
gin  me.  We  got  er  long  cause  w'en  I  met  de 
pussonul  man  I  could  furgit  fur  de  time  bein'  de 
civul  man.  Now,  I  hopes  dat  de  white  folks  will 
sepurate  me  de  same  way.  Whut  I  hez  done  ain't 
pussonul,  but  civul.  Make  dat  ez  plain  ez  de  nose 
on  yer  faces,  gemmens. 

"Tell  de  white  folks  dat  ez  er  slave  I  done  my 
bes'.  Tell  'um  how  I  keered  fur  my  missus  an' 
her  dorters  in  de  war  times.  Tell  'um  dat  I  nevah 
done  er  crimial  ack  in  my  life,  an'  dat  I  died  tryin' 
ter  keep  frum  bein'  blamed  fur  whut  my  gran- 
daddy  coulden't  do,  'cause  he  wuz  er  slave.  Tell 
'um  dat  I  died  in  jail.  I  wuz  tryin'  ter  git  my 
case  ter  de  S'preme  Coat  uv  de  United  States,  but 
frum  whut  dey  tells  me  my  case  is  goin'  even 
higher  dan  dat,  goin'  ter  de  S'preme  Coat  erbove." 
Uncle  Jack  paused  awhile  as  if  meditating.  Re- 
suming, he  said:  "I  ain't  sorry.  I  feels  shuah 


SUNSHINE  AND  STORM.  219 

dat  I'll  git  jestice  up  dare.  Yes,  git  jestice  up 
dare." 

Uncle  Jack's  eyes  now  closed,  and  seeing  that 
his  little  strength  was  rapidly  failing,  he  was  laid 
down  again.  Ever  and  anon  he  would  look  from 
one  face  to  another  as  if  hunting  for  some  look 
of  sympathy,  but  those  about  his  bedside  all  hap- 
pened to  be  out  of  sympathy  with  his  aspira- 
tions. 

"Gemmen,  could  yer — let  some  cullud  pusson 
come  in?  I'm  lonesome,"  said  Uncle  Jack,  feebly. 

The  jail  cook,  who  was  a  colored  man,  was  sum- 
moned, and  when  Uncle  Jack  caught  sight  of  him 
with  his  white  cap  and  apron  and  looked  into  his 
large  dark  face,  he  smiled  contentedly. 

The  day  had  been  cloudy,  but  the  clouds  now 
stepped  from  the  face  of  the  sun  and  its  rays 
struggled  through  the  iron  bars  to  the  floor  near 
the  foot  of  Uncle  Jack's  couch.  With  his  eyes 
fastened  on  these  few  streams  of  light  and  a 
happy  smile  upon  his  face,  Uncle  Jack,  at  heart 
the  friend  of  all  men,  breathed  his  last. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

A  CHINESE  LADY. 

IME  wore  on.  Days,  weeks,  months,  and  a 
few  short  years  which  seemed  to  Baug  an 
eternity  passed  away. 

In  the  chamber  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  on  the  morning  set  for  the  hearing 
of  the  suit  brought  according  to  plans  mapped  out 
by  Baug  to  have  declared  null  and  void  the  clauses 
of  the  Constitution  of  a  certain  Southern  State 
intended  to  grant  to  illiterate  whites  privileges 
denied  to  illiterate  Negroes  on  the  same  general 
level,  Baug  Peppers  sat  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
have  a  commanding  view  of  each  entrance  and  of 
the  audience.  He  was  on  hand  early,  in  fact,  was 
the  first  to  arrive,  and  was  determined  to  thor- 
oughly scrutinize  the  face  of  every  woman  to  be 
seen  in  the  court  room  that  day,  for  he  felt  that 
here  was  his  one  last  certain  opportunity  to  find 
Eina  Rapona. 

As  the  hour  for  the  hearing  of  the  case  drew 
near,  the  audience-room  began  to  fill,  and  Baug 
was  kept  busy  looking  from  face  to  face  in  the 
hope  of  beholding  the  one  face.  At  length  the 
room  was  filled,  every  seat  being  taken  save  one 
that  had  been  reserved  for  the  wife  of  the  Chi- 
nese minister. 

Baug's  heart  grew  heavy.     The  question  as  to 


A  CHINESE  LADY.  221 

whether  the  great  American  nation  was  to  make 
good  her  grant  of  equality  of  citizenship  to  the 
race  of  darker  hue  was  now  to  be  argued  by  him, 
and  he  felt  the  need  of  being  in  the  best  possible 
mood  to  present  the  case.  But,  with  no  Eina 
present,  the  weight  of  ten  thousand  worlds 
seemed  to  be  upon  him. 

Although  Baug  knew  that  the  one  vacant  seat 
was  for  the  wife  of  the  Chinese  minister,  the 
fact  that  any  seat  was  yet  empty  was  a  slight 
source  of  comfort,  the  drowning  man's  straw. 
Presently  there  was  a  rustling  of  silks  down  an 
aisle  as  a  lady,  clothed  in  the  Chinese  garb  and 
thickly  veiled,  came  straight  to  the  one  vacant  seat. 
All  hope  now  departed  from  Baug,  and  despair  set- 
tled over  his  soul. 

"Poor,  poor  millions  in  need  of  an  advocate  this 
day !  Upon  a  broken  reed,  upon  a  lacerated  heart, 
upon  a  crushed  spirit,  upon  a  dead  man  who 
yet  breathes,  your  hope  at  this  hour  is  made  to 
depend.  But,  I  will  do  my  best!  I  will  do  my 
best!" 

So  reflected  Baug  as  he  sat  awaiting  the  filing 
in  of  the  Justices.  At  length  the  Justices  marched 
in,  walked  to  their  respective  seats,  and  the 
famous  case  was  ready  to  be  called.  Baug  now 
left  his  seat  and  took  his  place  among  the  law- 
yers connected  with  the  case. 

Just  behind  where  Baug  had  been  sitting  was 
Clotille,  holding  in  her  lap  chubby  little  Conroe, 
who  had  entered  the  world  shortly  after  his  fa- 


222  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

ther's  death.  Baug  had  been  in  the  direct  line 
of  vision  between  the  lady  with  the  Chinese  garb 
and  Clotille,  so  that  this  lady  did  not  see  Clo- 
tille  and  the  boy  until  Baug  arose  to  leave. 

"She  has  fainted!  She  has  fainted!"  said  a 
woman  near  the  lady  of  the  Chinese  garb,  and  two 
or  three  neighboring  women  rushed  to  her  as- 
sistance. In  their  efforts  to  resuscitate  her,  they 
lifted  the  veil  from  her  face,  and  when  Clotille, 
who  had  observed  the  lady  faint,  caught  sight 
of  the  face  thus  revealed  she  uttered  a  slight 
scream  and  rushed  across  the  room.  It  was  the 
long  lost  Eina! 

Eina  was  soon  restored  to  consciousness,  and 
insisting  that  there  was  no  danger  of  a  recurrence 
of  the  trouble,  retained  her  seat. 

"See  my  little  boy  yonder,  Conroe,  Jr.?  That 
was  all  a  mistake,"  whispered  Clotille,  who  then 
returned  to  her  seat,  and  with  a  mother's  pride, 
stood  her  little  boy  in  her  lap  so  that  Eina  might 
see  him. 

All  this  while  Baug  had  been  busy  conferring 
with  the  lawyers,  and  had  not  seen  what  was 
transpiring  behind  him.  So  absentminded  was  he 
that  one  of  his  associate  attorneys  said  to  another : 
"What  a  dullard.  How  can  a  race  of  people 
amount  to  anything  so  long  as  it  commits  the 
leadership  to  such  stupid  fellows  as  this?" 

Baug,  having  been  looking  around  all  the  morn- 
ing, from  force  of  habit,  now  took  another  last 


A  CHINESE  LADY.  223 

look  at  the  audience.  Etna's  veil  was  now  lifted, 
and  as  Baug  caught  sight  of  her  beautiful  face,  of 
those  eyes  that  had  ever  been  with  him  night  and 
day,  he  grew  dizzy  and  clutched  the  railing  near 
which  he  sat. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

A  FRIGHTENED  JUSTICE. 

VERY  vestige  of  despair  now  left  Baug's 
face,  the  shadows  lifted  from  his  spirit, 
and  with  the  wine  of  a  great  love  stirring 
his  heart,  he  felt  that  he  could  that  day  plead  the 
cause  of  a  hundred  million  people. 

As  Baug  arose  to  speak,  practically  every  per- 
son in  the  audience  was  inclined  to  turn  to  his 
neighbor  and  ask,  "Who  is  that  fellow?  It  seems 
as  though  I  have  seen  him  before." 

One  of  the  Justices  turned  pale,  trembled  vio- 
lently from  head  to  foot,  and  eyed  Baug  with  ev- 
ery symptom  of  an  overpowering  fear.  One  lady 
remarked  to  Clotille,  "That  Justice  with  the  very 
bald  head  seems  afraid  of  that  fellow.  Wonder 
why?  He  doesn't  look  dangerous." 

When  Baug  uttered  his  first  words,  this  justice 
arose  and  in  a  voice  quaking  with  fear,  said :  "For 
good  and  sufficient  cause,  and  in  the  name  of  high 
heaven,  I  move  the  adjournment  of  this  court  for 
a  few  moments,  to  decide  in  private  a  momentous 
question  of  procedure." 

The  strange  request  and  the  very  evident  agi- 
tation of  the  Justice  created  a  sensation  in  the 
court  room.  The  motion  was  allowed  by  the 
court,  and  the  Justices  retired,  the  terror  strick- 


A   FRIGHTENED   JUSTICE.  225 

en  Justice  looking  back  eyeing  Baug  all  the  way 
as  he  passed  out. 

"Justice  Morrow,  we  will  hear  from  you,"  said 
the  Chief  Justice,  addressing  the  frightened  Jus- 
tice. 

"I  wish  to  know,  sir,  if  it  is  to  be  the  policy 
of  this  court  to  permit  men  long  since  dead  to 
practice  before  it.  Are  we  going  to  recognize 
spiritualism  to  that  extent?" 

The  Justices  looked  amazed. 

"Explain  yourself,"  said  the  Chief  Justice. 

"When  I  was  a  lad,"  said  Justice  Morrow,  "a 
certain  American  statesman  visited  my  home, 
played  with  me  as  a  boy  and  gave  me  my  first 
great  impulse  for  the  public  service.  He  worked 
upon  every  fiber  of  my  being,  and  his  principles 
have  shaped  my  innermost  thoughts.  He  after- 
wards became of  our  nation,  and  wrought 

well  both  in  domestic  and  international  affairs. 
His  name  is  indellibly  written  in  the  life  of  the  na- 
tion, his  likeness  adorns  all  our  walls,  his  picture 
is  in  all  of  our  school  books.  Show  me  the  palatial 
residence — or  the  humble  hovel  for  that  matter, 
that  lacks  his  likeness.  Sirs,  he  died  years  ago, 
but  he  lives  vividly  in  my  mind,  for  he  made  me. 
Sirs,"  said  Justice  Morrow  rising,  "he  is  out  yon- 
der now,  and  though  long  dead,  is  opening  this 
case  this  morning.  He  can't  fool  me.  I  see  he 
calls  himself  Baug  Peppers,  but  he  is  none  other 
than ." 

It  was  thought  best  to  humor  Justice  Morrow, 

'5 


226  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

so  Baug  was  summoned  before  the  Justices  for 
his  satisfaction. 

"Have  I  ever  seen  you  before?"  asked  Justice 
Morrow  of  Baug,  knitting  his  brow  and  directing 
toward  him  his  most  piercing  look,  taking  pains 
however,  to  stand  some  distance  away  and  put 
as  many  Justices  as  possible  between  himself  and 
Baug. 

"I  do  not  know,  sir.  Practically  every  man  I 
have  met  in  my  life  has  said  that  it  seems  as 
though  he  has  seen  me  before,  but  I  have  yet  to 
see  one  who  could  tell  me  when  or  where,"  said 
Baug. 

"Who  is  your  father?"  asked  Justice  Morrow, 
putting  a  little  greater  distance  between  Baug 
and  himself. 

"I  know  not.  He  may  have  been  hanged  for 
aught  I  know,"  said  Baug. 

"Sir,  you  are  the  spirit  of ,"  said  Justice 

Morrow,  backing  still  farther  away. 

The  Chief  Justice  took  Baug  in  hand  and  said : 
"You  say  every  one  seems  to  have  seen  or  met 
you  before?" 

"Yes,"  replied  Baug. 

"No  one  is  able  to  state  when  or  where?" 

"Absolutely  no  one,"  said  Baug. 

"Gentlemen,  I  tell  you  I  am  right,"  interposed 
Justice  Morrow  now  ready  to  leave  the  room  en- 
tirely. "It  is  too  uncanny.  I  like  my  Supreme 
Court  duties  but  not  well  enough  to  hobnob  with 
the  dead,"  he  said. 


A  FRIGHTENED   JUSTICE.  227 

"By  the  way,  I  think  I  have  the  solution/'  said 
the  Chief  Justice.  "Don't  you  recall,  gentlemen,, 

that had  a  son  who  was  the  very  image  of 

his  father  and  was  disinherited.  Evidently  this 
colored  man  is  an  offspring  of  that  boy.  Because 
of  this  man's  membership  in  the  colored  race,  peo- 
ple have  not  thought  to  associate  him  with 
's  family.  The  universality  of  the  impres- 
sion is  due  to  the  wide  circulation  of 's  like- 
ness.   being  white  and  having  occupied  the 

position  that  he  did,  the  profound  respect  for  the 
office  has  hitherto  prevented  the  minds  of  the  peo- 
ple from  crossing  over  and  making  the  com- 
parison that  would  have  explained  all.  It  has 
been  the  case  of  a  human  puzzle  picture.  Trace 
that  disinherited  son,  and  I  predict  that  you  will 
find  your  journey's  end  in  this  man  with  the  mys- 
terious face." 

Justice  Morrow  was  somewhat  mollified  by  this 
explanation,  but  decided  to  keep  his  eye  on  Baug 
just  the  same.  The  Justices  now  returned  to 
the  audience  room  and  Baug  resumed  his  speech. 
In  that  short  conference  another  great  shadow 
had  been  lifted  from  Baug's  soul.  He  had  found 
what  he  regarded  as  a  clue  to  his  parentage,  a 
possible  solution  to  the  mystery  of  his  face. 

With  that  shadow  lifted,  and  inspired  by  the 
presence  of  Eina,  whom  he  hoped  to  meet  after 
his  speech  was  over,  Baug  made  a  plea  of  such 
power,  that  the  opinion  of  the  Chief  Justice  that 
's  blood  coursed  in  his  veins  was  fully  con- 
firmed. 


228  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

In  the  course  of  Baug's  pleading,  one  remark 
particularly  had  seemed  to  catch  the  fancy  of  the 
justices  and  the  audience  as  well :  "Sirs/'  said  he, 
"if  Anglo-Saxon  blood  lacks  a  champion  on  the 
other  side  of  this  case,  let  me  for  a  moment  step 
across  the  line  and  take  up  a  cudgel  in  its  defense, 
In  its  name  I  repudiate  the  thought  of  asking  a 
handicap  for  the  colored  man  in  its  race  with  him. 
I  bring  to  you  the  message  the  true  white  South- 
erner would  have  me  deliver :  'I  want  no  laws  of 
indulgence  for  me  and  mine.  I  spurn  the  thought 
of  a  lower  test  for  Anglo-Saxon  blood.  If  my  son 
with  a  thousand  years  of  civilization  behind  him 
cannot  stand  up  in  an  equal  fight  with  the  great- 
grandson  of  a  heathen  and  a  savage,  if  he  must  be 
pampered  and  coddled  with  special  laws,  then  I 
say  with  all  my  soul  let  him  go  to  the  wall/  " 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

DISFRANCHISEMENT  FORGOTTEN. 

HEN  the  argument  in  the  great  case  was 
over  and  the  Justices  began  to  file  out, 
scores  in  the  audience  pressed  forward  to 
grasp  Baug's  hand  to  congratulate  him  upon  his 
effort.  As  that  audience  had  listened  to  and 
had  been  swayed  by  his  eloquence  and  the  bril- 
liance of  his  intellect  it  was  the  common  thought 
that  regardless  of  what  the  decision  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  might  or  might  not  be,  no  human 
code  could  be  made  effective  against  the  Baug 
Peppers  type  of  men. 

As  for  Baug,  he  could  not  show  proper  appre- 
ciation of  the  attentions  being  showered  upon 
him  at  the  conclusion  of  his  speech  for  keeping 
his  eyes  on  Eina,  who  neither  came  forward  nor 
yet  moved  to  go  out.  Now  that  she  knew  the 
truth  with  regard  to  Baug  and  Clotille,  she  did 
not  care  to  share  a  hand  shake  with  him  with  the 
rest  of  the  throng,  but  desired  him  all  to  herself 
for  a  talk,  and  yet  she  was  not  conscious  of  one 
word  that  she  had  to  say.  She  simply  craved  to 
be  alone  with  him.  Clotille,  divining  what  was 
now  to  happen,  was  only  too  glad  to  hurry  away 
so  that  she  might  no  longer  be  in  Baug  an<J 
Eina's  way. 

Baug  excused  himself  from  his  more  enthusias- 


230  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

tic  admirers  who  had  continued  to  remain  be- 
hind, and  got  very  busy  arranging  his  papers. 
Soon  the  room  was  cleared  of  all  save  himself 
and  Eina,  and  Baug  now  moved  in  her  direction. 
Disfranchisement,  Constitutions,  Supreme  Courts, 
the  Belrose  movement  now  all  faded  from  Baug's 
mind  as  he  once  more  stood  in  the  presence  of  the 
queen  of  his  heart. 

"Are  you  ready  to  go,  Miss  Rapona?"  asked 
Baug  simply. 

"Yes,"  said  Eina,  glancing  up  into  Baug's  face 
with  such  ineffable  sweetness  as  to  tax  his  power 
of  self  control  to  the  utmost. 

Eina  was  proud  of  the  work  Baug  had  done 
that  day.  The  two  walked  out  of  the  room  and 
hailed  a  passing  cab,  into  which  they  entered, 
and  were  whirled  along  toward  the  private  resi- 
dence where  Eina  had  taken  up  her  abode  when 
she  came  to  Washington  to  be  in  attendance  upon 
the  famous  case.  Neither  Baug  nor  Eina  for  a 
time  had  one  word  to  say.  That  larger  vocabu- 
lary of  sacred  silence  was  now  employed  by  these 
two  hearts  in  their  communing  the  one  with  the 
other. 

At  length  feeling  it  incumbent  upon  him  to  say 
something  Baug  remarked :  "Oh,  that  Uncle  Jack 
might  have  been  with  us  to-day." 

"Why  did  you  not  bring  him?"  asked  Eina. 

"Poor,  dear  Uncle  Jack  is  dead!" 

"Dead!  Uncle  Jack  dead!  My  dear  heavenly 
father!"  sobbed  Eina,  weeping  bitterly. 


DISFRANCHISEMENT  FORGOTTEN.  231 

It  by  no  means  improved  her  feelings  when 
she  found  out  that  he  died  as  the  result  of  an 
effort  to  serve  her  cause.  Baug,  finding  that  Eina 
had  kept  herself  absolutely  out  of  touch  with 
all  that  pertained  to  Belrose,  now  told  of  Con- 
roe's  heroic  death,  of  the  spread  of  the  Belrose 
movement  throughout  the  South,  of  the  happy  re- 
sults that  came  from  the  harmonious  co-opera- 
tion of  the  better  element  of  the  two  races,  of 
Seth  Molair's  great  popularity  throughout  the  na- 
tion and  the  honors  of  a  national  character  that 
evidently  awaited  him  for  having  pointed  the 
way  for  the  peaceful  adjustment  of  the  race  ques- 
tion in  B-elrose,  which  adjustment  stood  as  a 
model  of  procedure  for  other  communities.  Eina 
heard  with  interest  all  that  Baug  had  to  say,  but 
there  was  ever  before  her  the  kindly  face  of 
Uncle  Jack. 

At  length  they  arrived  at  Eina's  temporary 
home  and  she  excused  herself  to  dispense  with 
her  Chinese  attire.  When  she  reappeared  she 
was  wearing  the  dress  that  she  had  worn  the 
last  time  prior  to  the  break  that  she  was  in  Baug's 
company,  as  much  as  to  say  to  him,  "Let  us  begin 
where  we  left  off." 

B'ut  Baug,  who  took  the  hint,  was  utterly 
unwilling  for  any  such  arrangement.  As  he 
recalled  matters,  at  the  time  of  the  break  he  was 
daily  trying  to  muster  enough  courage  to  enable 
him  to  reach  the  asking  point,  with  a  fair  pros- 
pect of  getting  to  that  much  desired  state  with  a 


232  POINTING  THE  WAY. 

few  more  weeks  of  effort  on  his  part  and  con- 
siderable more  encouragement  from  Eina. .  But 
in  the  time  of  his  enforced  separation  from 
Eina  he  had  vowed  before  his  maker  that  he 
would  not  return  to  this  intermediate  state,  this 
sort  of  purgatory,  but  would  at  once  make  a 
straight  dash  for  the  heaven  of  his  happiness,  the 
securing  of  an  acknowledgement  from  Eina  that 
she  loved  him  and  would  become  his  wife. 

Baug  arose  to  meet  Eina  as  she  entered  and 
she  read  in  his  determined  face  his  purpose  to 
force  an  issue.  Into  Eina's  beautiful  eyes  there 
came — whether  she  so  willed  it  or  not — a  thrilling 
look  of  surrendering  love  that  drove  from  Baug's 
mind  as  far  too  feeble  the  words  with  which  he 
was  to  make  known  the  state  of  his  heart. 

Glad,  oh  so  glad,  that  her  weary,  aching  heart 
so  long  exiled  might  now  beat  undisturbedly 
against  Baug's  great,  strong  breast,  Eina  yielded 
herself  to  his  embrace. 

"Eina,  Eina,"  whispered  Baug,  "every  atom  of 
my  soul  loves  you.  Could  you,  do  you,  love  me? 
Tell  me  that  we  shall  evermore  be  one.  Will  you 
be  my— wife?" 

"There  is  nothing  else  for  me  to  do,  Baug.  You 
have  all  the  heart  there  is  in  me,"  said  Eina, 
her  beautiful  embarrassed  eyes  scanning  the  floor. 

Baug  gently  turned  her  face  so  that  he  might 
read  in  her  eyes  the  full  measure  of  her  love. 

And  in  the  mutual  gaze  that  followed,  which 


DISFRANCHISEMENT  FORGOTTEN.  233 

only  genuine  lovers  can  understand,  all  earthly 

troubles  vanished. 
*********** 

When  on  national  decoration  days,  loving  hands 
are  spreading  flowers  on  the  graves  of  the  dead 
who  perished  during  the  Civil  War,  Clotille  and 
Conroe  Driscoll,  Jr.,  Baug  and  Eina  and  little 
Clotille  Peppers  go  forth  to  decorate  the  graves 
of  Conroe  and  Uncle  Jack,  while  Seth  Molair  for- 
gets not  to  adorn  with  the  most  lovely  flowers 
the  grave  of  Aunt  Lucy,  who  though  a  colored 
woman,  lies  buried  in  the  plot  of  ground  that 
holds  the  body  of  his  father  and  awaits  the  com- 
ing of  that  of  Molair's  mother  and  himself. 

In  that  one  family  plot,  Southern  at  that,  there 
is  no  color  line. 

THE   END. 


